Wall Street Zen Upgrades Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) to "Buy"

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Estée Lauder Companies to “Buy” from “Hold,” although the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold” with an average price target of $104.67.
• Estée Lauder exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.39 in EPS versus a $0.32 consensus estimate and $3.64 billion in revenue, up 6.3% year over year.
• EL shares opened at $96.99, while insiders have sold 17,105 shares worth approximately $1.73 million over the past 90 days.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on EL. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $90.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Estee Lauder Companies from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $90.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Estee Lauder Companies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $104.67.

Estee Lauder Companies Stock Up 0.5%

EL stock opened at $96.99 on Friday. Estee Lauder Companies has a 1-year low of $66.22 and a 1-year high of $121.64. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $90.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $85.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 197.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.28.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 19th. The company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.07. Estee Lauder Companies had a return on equity of 23.52% and a net margin of 1.21%.The company had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.55 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.09 earnings per share. Estee Lauder Companies's revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Estee Lauder Companies has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.100-3.350 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Estee Lauder Companies will post 3.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Estee Lauder Companies

In related news, VP Rashida La Lande sold 7,766 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.32, for a total value of $802,383.12. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 14,357 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,483,365.24. This trade represents a 35.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Charlene Barshefsky sold 3,775 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.82, for a total transaction of $373,045.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 50,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,036,954.22. The trade was a 6.90% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,105 shares of company stock valued at $1,729,325. Corporate insiders own 13.05% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. REAP Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Investors Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych Spolka Akcyjna bought a new position in Estee Lauder Companies in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. DV Equities LLC bought a new position in Estee Lauder Companies in the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new position in Estee Lauder Companies in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Kozak & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Estee Lauder Companies during the second quarter valued at $30,000. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Estee Lauder Companies Company Profile

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc is a global beauty company that develops, manufactures and markets prestige skincare, makeup, fragrance and hair-care products. Its portfolio includes Estée Lauder, Clinique, M·A·C, Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, La Mer, Jo Malone London, Aveda, Tom Ford Beauty and The Ordinary, among other brands.

Founded in 1946 by Estée and Joseph Lauder, the company began with four skincare products and has expanded into a broad international beauty business. Its products are sold through department and specialty stores, freestanding stores, e-commerce platforms, travel retail locations and other distribution channels.

Estée Lauder Companies serves consumers in markets around the world, including North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East and Africa.

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