Larson Financial Group LLC Acquires 643 Shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 18.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,111 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 643 shares during the quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $308,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Centre Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the 4th quarter worth $8,585,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 47.5% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 141,804 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,392,000 after acquiring an additional 45,687 shares in the last quarter. Harrell Investment Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 52.1% in the 4th quarter. Harrell Investment Partners LLC now owns 10,285 shares of the company’s stock worth $771,000 after acquiring an additional 3,524 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 79.4% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,723,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $570,600,000 after acquiring an additional 2,533,006 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Paloma Partners Management Co grew its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 729.4% in the 3rd quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co now owns 47,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,735,000 after acquiring an additional 41,773 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.15% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Akhil Shrivastava acquired 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $65.79 per share, for a total transaction of $46,053.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 2,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $156,645.99. This trade represents a 41.64 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg acquired 43,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $66.35 per share, for a total transaction of $2,853,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 430,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $28,583,580. The trade was a 11.09 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 12.78% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Estée Lauder Companies Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of EL opened at $72.00 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $74.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $79.39. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a twelve month low of $62.29 and a twelve month high of $159.54. The stock has a market cap of $25.85 billion, a PE ratio of -36.92, a P/E/G ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.30. Estée Lauder Companies had a positive return on equity of 16.82% and a negative net margin of 4.61%. The firm had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.98 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.88 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -71.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on EL. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $81.00 to $77.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $76.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. CICC Research began coverage on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Friday, December 27th. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $82.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.00.

About Estée Lauder Companies

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc manufactures, markets, and sells skin care, makeup, fragrance, and hair care products worldwide. It offers skin care products, including moisturizers, serums, cleansers, toners, body care, exfoliators, acne care and oil correctors, facial masks, and sun care products; and makeup products, such as lipsticks, lip glosses, mascaras, foundations, eyeshadows, and powders, as well as compacts, brushes, and other makeup tools.