Chiron Capital Management LLC Grows Stake in The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. $EL

Key Points

• Chiron Capital Management LLC increased its stock position in The Estee Lauder Companies by 88.4%, owning a total of 23,013 shares valued at approximately $1.5 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Invesco Ltd. and American Century Companies Inc., also raised their stakes in Estee Lauder, highlighting increased institutional interest.
• Estee Lauder Companies announced a quarterly dividend of $0.35 per share, set to be paid on September 16, representing a yield of 1.5%.

Chiron Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) by 88.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,013 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 10,797 shares during the period. Estee Lauder Companies makes up about 1.4% of Chiron Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Chiron Capital Management LLC's holdings in Estee Lauder Companies were worth $1,519,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Horizon Investments LLC boosted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 5.1% during the first quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 3,351 shares of the company's stock valued at $221,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 0.7% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 24,633 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,626,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 5.1% during the first quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 3,796 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank boosted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 2.9% during the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 7,200 shares of the company's stock valued at $475,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 0.3% during the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 63,538 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,194,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 55.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on EL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Estee Lauder Companies from $101.00 to $99.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Estee Lauder Companies from $60.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Estee Lauder Companies from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen lowered Estee Lauder Companies from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Estee Lauder Companies from $90.00 to $107.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $87.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Lynn Forester sold 3,702 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.65, for a total transaction of $339,288.30. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 15,479 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,418,650.35. This trade represents a 19.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Lande Rashida La sold 6,417 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.88, for a total value of $589,593.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 12.78% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Estee Lauder Companies Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of EL stock traded up $1.74 on Friday, reaching $89.20. 3,698,356 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,126,418. The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. has a 52 week low of $48.37 and a 52 week high of $103.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.10 billion, a PE ratio of -28.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.15. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $89.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.78.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 20th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.02. Estee Lauder Companies had a positive return on equity of 12.37% and a negative net margin of 7.91%.The firm had revenue of $3.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.36 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.64 EPS. Estee Lauder Companies's quarterly revenue was down 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Estee Lauder Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.900-2.100 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 EPS for the current year.

Estee Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. Estee Lauder Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -44.59%.

Estee 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.