Vontobel Holding Ltd. Sells 98,840 Shares of The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. $EL

Key Points

• Vontobel Holding Ltd. reduced its stake in The Estee Lauder Companies by 38.3%, selling 98,840 shares and retaining 159,212 shares worth approximately $12.86 million.
• Several institutional investors have adjusted their positions, with notable increases from Signaturefd LLC (9.3%) and Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC (0.4%) during the same period.
• Estee Lauder's stock has faced recent rating changes, including a downgrade from Wall Street Zen to "sell" while HSBC upgraded it to "buy" with a new price target of $99.00.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lessened its stake in shares of The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) by 38.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 159,212 shares of the company's stock after selling 98,840 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s holdings in Estee Lauder Companies were worth $12,864,000 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 EL. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC increased its position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 0.4% during the second quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 28,826 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,329,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 9.3% during the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,815 shares of the company's stock valued at $147,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 5.1% during the first quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 3,351 shares of the company's stock valued at $221,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 0.7% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 24,633 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,626,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the period. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 5.6% during the second quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,416 shares of the company's stock valued at $276,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 55.15% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Estee Lauder Companies from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. HSBC raised shares of Estee Lauder Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $80.00 to $99.00 in a research note on Friday, June 27th. UBS Group upped their price target on Estee Lauder Companies from $62.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on Estee Lauder Companies from $62.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Estee Lauder Companies in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $88.55.

Insider Activity at Estee Lauder Companies

In other Estee Lauder Companies news, VP Lande Rashida La sold 6,417 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.88, for a total value of $589,593.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lynn Forester sold 3,702 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.65, for a total transaction of $339,288.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 15,479 shares in the company, valued at $1,418,650.35. The trade was a 19.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 13.05% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Estee Lauder Companies Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of EL stock opened at $93.98 on Friday. The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. has a 12-month low of $48.37 and a 12-month high of $97.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89. The firm's 50 day moving average is $89.47 and its 200 day moving average is $76.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.82 billion, a P/E ratio of -29.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.16.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 20th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.02. Estee Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 7.91% and a positive return on equity of 12.37%. The company had revenue of $3.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.36 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.64 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Estee Lauder Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.900-2.100 EPS. Research analysts expect that The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Estee Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. Estee Lauder Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -44.59%.

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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