Connective Capital Management LLC Takes Position in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Connective Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 11,432 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $857,000. Estée Lauder Companies makes up 1.0% of Connective Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. HB Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,925 shares of the company's stock worth $219,000 after buying an additional 553 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 42.1% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 476 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 58.8% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 25,470 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,910,000 after buying an additional 9,427 shares during the period. Harrell Investment Partners LLC grew its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 52.1% in the fourth quarter. Harrell Investment Partners LLC now owns 10,285 shares of the company's stock valued at $771,000 after acquiring an additional 3,524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 1834 Investment Advisors Co. acquired a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $450,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.15% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $70.00 to $60.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $72.00 to $61.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective 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. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Estée Lauder Companies from $77.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $76.00 price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $75.20.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Performance

Shares of EL traded down $0.67 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $63.75. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,534,024 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,107,628. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.37 and a 1-year high of $127.05. The stock has a market cap of $22.93 billion, a P/E ratio of -32.69, a PEG ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.12. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $68.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 last year, the firm posted $0.97 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. Estée Lauder Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently -57.85%.

About Estée Lauder Companies

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.