S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC Grows Holdings in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC increased its holdings in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 16.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 136,566 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,017 shares during the quarter. Estée Lauder Companies accounts for 3.4% of S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $10,240,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 30.9% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 639 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC boosted its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC now owns 2,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the period. Cove Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter. Cove Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,625 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC grew its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 8,001 shares of the company’s stock worth $798,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Finally, William Allan Corp raised its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 3.1% during the third quarter. William Allan Corp now owns 6,167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $615,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. 55.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Estée Lauder Companies Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:EL opened at $73.82 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $73.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $85.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 131.82, a PEG ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 1.02. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.29 and a 52-week high of $159.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.32.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.05. Estée Lauder Companies had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The company had revenue of $3.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.11 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.47 EPS for the current year.

Estée Lauder Companies Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 250.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on EL shares. TD Cowen cut their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $95.00 to $70.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com lowered Estée Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America reduced their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $96.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 77,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were bought at an average price of $64.01 per share, for a total transaction of $4,960,775.00. Following the purchase, the director now 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 purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Fabrizio Freda sold 10,969 shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.76, for a total transaction of $743,259.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 295,838 shares in the company, valued at $20,045,982.88. This represents a 3.58 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 12.78% of the stock is owned by 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.