Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) Shares Gap Down - Time to Sell?

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $82.77, but opened at $76.50. Estée Lauder Companies shares last traded at $69.72, with a volume of 2,404,172 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on EL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of 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. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of Estée Lauder Companies from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $105.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $90.55.

Estée Lauder Companies Trading Down 5.3 %

The company's 50-day moving average is $77.22 and its 200 day moving average is $83.52. The company has a market cap of $23.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 117.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.89 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.98 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 1.31%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.88 EPS. Research analysts predict that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.5 EPS for the current year.

Estée Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Estée Lauder Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 250.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Paul J. Fribourg purchased 75,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $64.93 per share, for a total transaction of $4,902,215.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 310,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,128,300. This trade represents a 32.20 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 12.78% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Estée Lauder Companies

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Peterson Wealth Services grew its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 1,506 shares of the company's stock worth $113,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 42.1% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 476 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,853 shares of the company's stock valued at $139,000 after buying an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted 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 valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 479 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.