King Luther Capital Management Corp Reduces Stake in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

King Luther Capital Management Corp cut its holdings in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 29.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 130,277 shares of the company’s stock after selling 53,677 shares during the period. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $12,987,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in Estée Lauder Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. PARK CIRCLE Co purchased a new position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new position in Estée Lauder Companies in the second quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies in the first quarter worth about $35,000. 55.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Estée Lauder Companies Price Performance

EL opened at $66.85 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $83.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $98.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 119.37, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 1.05. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.29 and a 52-week high of $159.75.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $3.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.37 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.11 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.59 EPS for the current year.

Estée Lauder Companies Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 471.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on EL. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $131.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered Estée Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $125.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $114.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Estée Lauder Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.57.

Insider Buying and Selling at Estée Lauder Companies

In other Estée Lauder Companies news, Director Charlene Barshefsky sold 3,437 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.93, for a total value of $315,963.41. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 49,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,578,114. This trade represents a 6.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg purchased 77,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $64.01 per share, for a total transaction of $4,960,775.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 234,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,010,345. The trade was a 49.36 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 12.78% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Estée 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.