Morgan Stanley Lowers Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) Price Target to $81.00

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) had its target price decreased by Morgan Stanley from $85.00 to $81.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price indicates a potential upside of 23.12% from the stock’s current price.

EL has been the subject of several other research reports. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $81.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective 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. HSBC downgraded shares of Estée Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $100.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Estée Lauder Companies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $76.00 target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research report on Tuesday. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $90.05.

Estée Lauder Companies Price Performance

Shares of EL opened at $65.79 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.62 billion, a PE ratio of 117.49, a PEG ratio of 5.89 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $77.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.32. Estée Lauder Companies has a fifty-two week low of $62.29 and a fifty-two week high of $159.54.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.30. Estée Lauder Companies had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 1.31%. The company had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.98 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.88 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Estée Lauder Companies will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Estée Lauder Companies

In other news, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 75,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $64.93 per share, for a total transaction of $4,902,215.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 310,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,128,300. This trade represents a 32.20 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 12.78% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Estée Lauder Companies

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EL. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators increased its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 68.7% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 388 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 297.0% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 401 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Estée Lauder Companies during the third quarter worth $31,000. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.