Geode Capital Management LLC Has $358.52 Million Stock Holdings in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 2.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,796,317 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 117,163 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $358,515,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators increased its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 68.7% in the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 388 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 297.0% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 401 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in 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 in the last quarter. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on EL shares. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $81.00 price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays cut their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $71.00 to $64.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Estée Lauder Companies has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.00.

Insider Activity at Estée Lauder Companies

In related news, CFO Akhil Shrivastava acquired 700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $65.79 per share, for a total transaction of $46,053.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $156,645.99. The trade was a 41.64 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 43,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $66.35 per share, with a total value of $2,853,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 430,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,583,580. This trade represents a 11.09 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 12.78% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Estée Lauder Companies Trading Down 9.1 %

Shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock opened at $52.89 on Friday. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 1 year low of $51.48 and a 1 year high of $149.91. The company has a market capitalization of $18.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -27.12, a P/E/G ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $76.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.98 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 4.61% and a positive return on equity of 16.82%. Estée Lauder Companies’s revenue was down 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.88 EPS. Research analysts forecast that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 EPS for the current year.

Estée Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.65%. Estée Lauder Companies’s payout ratio is currently -71.79%.

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.