The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) Stock Position Decreased by Aviso Financial Inc.

Aviso Financial Inc. cut its stake in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 6.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,693 shares of the company’s stock after selling 266 shares during the period. Aviso Financial Inc.’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $277,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insider Transactions at Estée Lauder Companies

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on EL shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $76.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $81.00 price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Friday, January 31st. Twenty research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.00.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Performance

EL opened at $66.64 on Friday. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 12-month low of $62.29 and a 12-month high of $155.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.92 billion, a P/E ratio of -34.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.08. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $73.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $78.84. 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 released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.98 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a positive return on equity of 16.82% and a negative net margin of 4.61%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.88 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Estée Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio is -71.79%.

Estée Lauder Companies Profile

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.