The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) Shares Purchased by Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. raised its holdings in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) by 14.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 99,772 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,903 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $7,461,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Centre Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $8,585,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 47.5% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 141,804 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,392,000 after purchasing an additional 45,687 shares during the period. Harrell Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 52.1% during the 4th quarter. Harrell Investment Partners LLC now owns 10,285 shares of the company's stock worth $771,000 after purchasing an additional 3,524 shares during the period. Washington Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $352,000. Finally, Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 91,200 shares of the company's stock worth $6,838,000 after buying an additional 4,690 shares during the period. 55.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Estée Lauder Companies Price Performance

NYSE EL traded up $0.40 on Tuesday, hitting $59.54. The company had a trading volume of 2,857,559 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,081,214. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The company's fifty day moving average price is $63.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $71.44. The company has a market capitalization of $21.37 billion, a PE ratio of -30.53, a PEG ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.10. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 12-month low of $48.37 and a 12-month high of $148.71.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.30. The business had revenue of $4 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.98 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 4.61% and a positive return on equity of 16.82%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.88 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Estée Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.35%. Estée Lauder Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -71.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $72.00 to $61.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of 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. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $91.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $70.00 to $62.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on 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. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Estée Lauder Companies currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $81.19.

Insider Transactions at Estée Lauder Companies

In other Estée Lauder Companies news, CFO Akhil Shrivastava acquired 700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $65.79 per share, with a total value of $46,053.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 43,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $66.35 per share, for a total transaction of $2,853,050.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 430,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,583,580. This represents a 11.09 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 12.78% of the company's stock.

Estée 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.