The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) Shares Sold by Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc.

Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. lessened its holdings in The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) by 3.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 108,609 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,021 shares during the quarter. Estee Lauder Companies accounts for about 0.9% of Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc.'s holdings in Estee Lauder Companies were worth $7,168,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Estee Lauder Companies by 16.1% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 140,295 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,259,000 after purchasing an additional 19,506 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Estee Lauder Companies by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,088,880 shares of the company's stock valued at $203,866,000 after purchasing an additional 117,330 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 37.4% during the 1st quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 21,312 shares of the company's stock worth $1,407,000 after acquiring an additional 5,800 shares in the last quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 44,105 shares of the company's stock worth $2,911,000 after acquiring an additional 3,026 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Calamos Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 104,128 shares of the company's stock worth $6,872,000 after acquiring an additional 633 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.15% of the company's stock.

Estee Lauder Companies Trading Up 1.4%

EL traded up $1.21 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $86.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,349,207 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,305,268. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $70.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $69.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market cap of $31.22 billion, a PE ratio of -35.86, a PEG ratio of 6.07 and a beta of 1.17. The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. has a twelve month low of $48.37 and a twelve month high of $105.59.

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

Estee Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. Estee Lauder Companies's payout ratio is currently -57.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on EL. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $75.00 price target (down previously from $92.00) on shares of Estee Lauder Companies in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Estee Lauder Companies from $72.00 to $61.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wall Street Zen raised Estee Lauder Companies from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Barclays boosted their price target on Estee Lauder Companies from $56.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, HSBC raised Estee Lauder Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $99.00 in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $75.95.

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.