Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.25 EPS

Key Points

• Estée Lauder beat Q3 expectations with adjusted EPS of $0.91 versus consensus $0.66 and revenue of $3.71B, and raised FY2026 guidance to about $2.33–$2.43 EPS while giving a preliminary FY2027 outlook of 3%–5% organic growth and a 12.5%–13% operating margin.
• The company expanded its Profit Recovery & Growth Plan, increasing expected restructuring and other charges to about $1.5–$1.7B before taxes and planning roughly 9,000–10,000 role reductions, which could create near‑term disruption to GAAP results.
• Management highlighted underlying momentum—organic sales up about 2%, gross margin improvement of roughly 140 bps and an operating margin of 15%—driven by strong online growth and outperformance in Mainland China, Hainan travel retail and priority emerging markets.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.25, Briefing.com reports. The business had revenue of $3.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.69 billion. Estee Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 1.21% and a positive return on equity of 17.59%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. Estee Lauder Companies updated its FY 2026 guidance to 2.330-2.430 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Estee Lauder Companies' conference call:

• Management raised fiscal 2026 guidance to about 3% organic sales growth, an operating margin of 10.7%–11% and EPS of $2.35–$2.45, and issued a preliminary fiscal 2027 view of 3%–5% organic growth with a 12.5%–13% operating margin.
• Third‑quarter results showed underlying momentum: organic sales +2%, gross margin expanded ~140 bps, operating margin widened to 15% (vs. 11.4% a year ago) and diluted EPS rose 40%, with strong online growth (double‑digit in Q3; ~10% YTD) and outperformance in Mainland China, Hainan travel retail and priority emerging markets.
• The company is rolling out its One ELC operating model and tech partnerships (Accenture, Shopify, WPP), with enterprise business services already live across key systems and full deployment targeted by end of calendar 2026 to unify data, improve activation and drive efficiency.
• Estée Lauder expanded its PRGP restructuring program and now expects total restructuring and other charges of $1.5–$1.7 billion before taxes, including planned exits of select unproductive department‑store and freestanding doors and anticipated impacts to beauty advisor roles.
• Geopolitical and travel‑retail headwinds persist: the Middle East conflict reduced Q3 EMEA growth by ~1 percentage point and is expected to hurt Q4 by ~2 points of sales and ~<$0.06 in EPS, while travel retail recovery is uneven despite strong Hainan performance.

Estee Lauder Companies Trading Up 3.0%

EL stock traded up $2.32 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $79.03. 7,019,386 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,499,427. The company has a market capitalization of $28.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -158.06, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.00. Estee Lauder Companies has a fifty-two week low of $56.66 and a fifty-two week high of $121.64. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $83.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $96.43.

Estee Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. Estee Lauder Companies's payout ratio is -280.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EL. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in Estee Lauder Companies by 4.8% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 25,898 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,709,000 after buying an additional 1,177 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in Estee Lauder Companies by 33.4% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 6,992 shares of the company's stock valued at $462,000 after buying an additional 1,749 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Estee Lauder Companies by 24.1% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 4,619 shares of the company's stock valued at $305,000 after buying an additional 898 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Estee Lauder Companies by 23.2% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 997 shares of the company's stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in Estee Lauder Companies by 55.5% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 13,522 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,093,000 after buying an additional 4,826 shares in the last quarter. 55.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Estee Lauder Companies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Estee Lauder Companies from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $130.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, January 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $90.00 to $75.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $113.00 target price on shares of Estee Lauder Companies in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $97.95.

Estee Lauder Companies News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Estee Lauder Companies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 beat and guidance raise — EL reported adjusted EPS $0.91 vs. consensus $0.66 and revenue $3.71B vs. $3.69B; management raised FY‑2026 EPS guidance to a 2.33–2.43 range, supporting upside to near‑term earnings expectations. Business Wire: Q3 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Restructuring-linked margin improvement — Management expanded its Profit Recovery & Growth Plan (PRGP), raising expected annual gross benefits to roughly $1.0–$1.2B and increasing planned position reductions (now up to ~9,000–10,000), which investors view as driving near‑term margin expansion. Proactive Investors: Beats estimates, raises guidance
• Neutral Sentiment: Regional sales momentum — Management highlighted stronger sales in Mainland China and Europe (and double‑digit fragrance growth year‑to‑date), a constructive signal for recovery in key luxury channels but still exposed to travel and macro variability. Reuters: Q3 beat
• Neutral Sentiment: Strategic minority investment — EL announced a minority investment in luxury clinical skin‑care brand 111SKIN, reflecting continued brand and portfolio investment; this is longer‑term strategic rather than an immediate earnings driver. Financial Post: 111SKIN investment
• Negative Sentiment: Deeper job cuts and mixed GAAP outlook — While cost savings are viewed positively, the company increased planned headcount reductions (reports cite up to 10,000 roles and separate notices of up to 3,000 more jobs tied to strategic moves), which can signal restructuring risk and near‑term disruption; management’s GAAP metrics were weaker (negative net margin), which some investors penalize. Financial Post: Cut 3,000 jobs
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and macro risk concerns — Some analysts caution EL’s rally has priced in much of the recovery (comments flag an expensive valuation) and note exposure to Asian travel retail and broader macro/energy shocks, which could limit multiple expansion. Seeking Alpha: Valuation caution

Estee Lauder Companies Company Profile

Estée Lauder Companies Inc NYSE: EL is a global leader in prestige beauty that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of skincare, makeup, fragrance and hair care products. Founded in 1946 by Estée Lauder, the company has grown from a small family business into a multinational consumer-products enterprise headquartered in New York City. Its activities span product research and development, brand and product marketing, manufacturing and global distribution across multiple retail channels.

The company's portfolio includes a mix of legacy and prestige brands that target different consumer segments and price points, with well-known names such as Estée Lauder, Clinique, MAC, La Mer and Jo Malone among others.

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