Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Lowers Stake in The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. cut its holdings in The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) by 63.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,647 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,233 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Estee Lauder Companies were worth $241,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG increased its stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 91,200 shares of the company's stock worth $6,838,000 after acquiring an additional 4,690 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Estee Lauder Companies by 47.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 479 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc increased its position in Estee Lauder Companies by 32.1% during the 4th quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 5,174 shares of the company's stock worth $388,000 after purchasing an additional 1,258 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 56.0% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,257 shares of the company's stock worth $94,000 after buying an additional 451 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $206,000. 55.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Estee Lauder Companies Stock Performance

Shares of EL opened at $75.29 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The company has a market capitalization of $27.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -31.11, a PEG ratio of 9.38 and a beta of 1.12. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $63.85 and a 200 day moving average of $68.82. The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. has a 12 month low of $48.37 and a 12 month high of $115.82.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 positive return on equity of 15.60% and a negative net margin of 5.89%. The firm had revenue of $2.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.97 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Estee Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. Estee Lauder Companies's payout ratio is currently -57.85%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on EL. B. Riley reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $60.00 target price (down previously from $70.00) on shares of Estee Lauder Companies in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Estee 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. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $70.00 to $62.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $60.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $81.00 price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $75.15.

About Estee 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.

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