The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) Position Reduced by Mutual of America Capital Management LLC

Mutual of America Capital Management LLC cut its position in shares of The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 2.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,246 shares of the company’s stock after selling 733 shares during the quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Estee Lauder Companies were worth $1,798,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of EL. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 163.8% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,382,579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,078,406,000 after buying an additional 8,930,011 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors purchased a new stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $554,509,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $251,304,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 148.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,481,248 shares of the company’s stock worth $410,984,000 after purchasing an additional 3,278,632 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Independent Franchise Partners LLP lifted its position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 45.5% in the fourth quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 7,858,158 shares of the company’s stock worth $589,205,000 after purchasing an additional 2,458,379 shares in the last quarter. 55.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on EL shares. HSBC raised shares of Estee Lauder Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $99.00 in a research report on Friday, June 27th. B. Riley reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $60.00 price target (down from $70.00) on shares of Estee Lauder Companies in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $77.00 to $67.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target 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. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Estee Lauder Companies in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $110.00 price target for the company. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $82.50.

Estee Lauder Companies Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of Estee Lauder Companies stock opened at $87.20 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.37 billion, a P/E ratio of -36.03, a PEG ratio of 6.23 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $74.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.95. The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. has a 12-month low of $48.37 and a 12-month high of $103.44.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.97 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities 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 Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Estee Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -57.85%.

Estee Lauder Companies Company 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.