Highland Capital Management LLC Reduces Holdings in The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Highland Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) by 18.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,308 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,186 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC's holdings in Estee Lauder Companies were worth $1,472,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 47.4% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 479 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the period. Utah Retirement Systems lifted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 38,236 shares of the company's stock worth $2,867,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. First Hawaiian Bank lifted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 2.9% in the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 7,200 shares of the company's stock worth $475,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 34,276 shares of the company's stock worth $2,570,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 57.3% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 626 shares of the company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.15% of the company's stock.

Estee Lauder Companies Stock Performance

EL opened at $80.28 on Friday. The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. has a 52-week low of $48.37 and a 52-week high of $108.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The company has a market cap of $28.88 billion, a P/E ratio of -33.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 8.27 and a beta of 1.12. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $66.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.81.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.36. Estee Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 5.89% and a positive return on equity of 15.60%. The firm had revenue of $2.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.97 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Estee Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.74%. Estee Lauder Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -57.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $77.00 to $67.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. HSBC raised shares of Estee Lauder Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $80.00 to $99.00 in a research note on Friday. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $56.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. B. Riley reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $60.00 price target (down from $70.00) on shares of Estee Lauder Companies in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $77.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $74.45.

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.

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