The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) Shares Acquired by BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas grew its stake in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) by 149.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,291 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,944 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas' holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $1,356,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 47.5% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 141,804 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,392,000 after purchasing an additional 45,687 shares during the last quarter. Harrell Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 52.1% during the fourth quarter. Harrell Investment Partners LLC now owns 10,285 shares of the company's stock valued at $771,000 after buying an additional 3,524 shares during the last quarter. Washington Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $352,000. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG increased its position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 91,200 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,838,000 after acquiring an additional 4,690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in Estée Lauder Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,129,000. 55.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Estée Lauder Companies Trading Up 3.3 %

Shares of EL stock traded up $1.96 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $61.22. The company had a trading volume of 4,019,187 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,058,892. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $48.37 and a fifty-two week high of $139.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The company's fifty day moving average is $61.65 and its 200 day moving average is $70.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.98 billion, a PE ratio of -31.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.12.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.36. Estée Lauder Companies had a positive return on equity of 16.82% and a negative net margin of 4.61%. The business had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.97 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Estée Lauder Companies's payout ratio is currently -57.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on EL shares. Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $76.00 price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $77.00 to $67.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, B. Riley reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $60.00 price objective (down previously from $70.00) on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Estée Lauder Companies presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $75.20.

Estée Lauder Companies Company 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.