Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC Grows Stake in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC raised its position in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) by 629.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 143,217 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 123,582 shares during the quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC's holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $10,738,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in EL. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 68.7% in the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 388 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew 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 purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Estée 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.15% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on EL shares. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $70.00 to $62.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. DA Davidson reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $81.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. B. Riley reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $60.00 target price (down previously from $70.00) on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $77.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $75.20.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of EL traded down $1.55 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $62.87. The company had a trading volume of 795,082 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,132,700. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 1 year low of $48.37 and a 1 year high of $127.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.62 billion, a P/E ratio of -32.24, a P/E/G ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.37. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $60.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $68.76.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last issued its 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. Estée Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 4.61% and a positive return on equity of 16.82%. The firm had revenue of $2.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.97 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 EPS for the current year.

Estée Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. Estée Lauder Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.