South Dakota Investment Council Grows Stake in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

South Dakota Investment Council grew its holdings in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 17.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,564 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,425 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $1,399,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 1,900.0% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 280 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 82.2% in the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 277 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Washington Trust Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 42.7% in the 3rd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.15% of the company’s stock.

Estée Lauder Companies Price Performance

EL stock opened at $147.36 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $146.84 and a 200-day moving average of $138.16. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 12-month low of $102.22 and a 12-month high of $253.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The company has a market cap of $52.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 113.35, a PEG ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 1.07.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 5th. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.33. Estée Lauder Companies had a net margin of 3.08% and a return on equity of 9.78%. The company had revenue of $4.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.19 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.54 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 2.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.79%. Estée Lauder Companies’s payout ratio is 203.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on EL shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $191.00 price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Monday. Raymond James raised their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded Estée Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $146.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Monday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Estée Lauder Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $168.00.

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, nail polishes, and powders, as well as compacts, brushes, and other makeup tools.