KBC Group NV Buys 637,641 Shares of The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. $EL

Key Points

• KBC Group NV sharply increased its stake in Estée Lauder, buying 637,641 additional shares in Q1 and boosting its holdings by 910.3% to 707,692 shares worth about $50.8 million.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but still leans constructive: Goldman Sachs and Citigroup have buy ratings, while Zacks cut the stock to hold; MarketBeat’s consensus rating is “Hold” with an average price target of $99.16.
• Recent results beat expectations, with Estée Lauder reporting $0.91 EPS versus $0.66 expected and revenue of $3.71 billion, while also guiding FY2026 EPS to $2.33-$2.43.

KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) by 910.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 707,692 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 637,641 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned 0.20% of Estee Lauder Companies worth $50,792,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. REAP Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Estee Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Investors Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych Spolka Akcyjna purchased a new position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 39.1% during the 4th quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 324 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Finally, DV Equities LLC bought a new position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors own 55.15% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on EL. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Estee Lauder Companies in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $100.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $92.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Estee Lauder Companies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Estee Lauder Companies has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $99.16.

Estee Lauder Companies Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE EL opened at $83.47 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The business has a 50-day moving average of $83.77 and a 200-day moving average of $90.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -119.25, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.27. The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. has a 12 month low of $66.22 and a 12 month high of $121.64.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.25. Estee Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 1.67% and a positive return on equity of 20.66%. The business had revenue of $3.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.65 earnings per share. Estee Lauder Companies's quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Estee Lauder Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.330-2.430 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. will post 2.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Estee Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Estee Lauder Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -200.00%.

About Estee Lauder Companies

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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