Estée Lauder Companies Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:EL)

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 57,215 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 238% compared to the typical daily volume of 16,906 call options.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Down 2.4 %

Estée Lauder Companies stock traded down $1.60 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $64.34. 8,455,063 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,456,121. 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 company has a market cap of $23.10 billion, a PE ratio of 114.89, a P/E/G ratio of 5.89 and a beta of 1.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $77.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $83.39. Estée Lauder Companies has a 12 month low of $62.29 and a 12 month high of $159.54.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (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 the consensus estimate of $3.98 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 17.31%. 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 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Estée Lauder Companies will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Estée Lauder Companies's payout ratio is 250.00%.

Insider Transactions at Estée Lauder Companies

In other Estée Lauder Companies news, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 75,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $64.93 per share, for a total transaction of $4,902,215.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 310,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,128,300. This represents a 32.20 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 12.78% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Estée Lauder Companies

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EL. Centre Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter worth $8,585,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 47.5% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 141,804 shares of the company's stock worth $13,392,000 after buying an additional 45,687 shares during the last quarter. Harrell Investment Partners LLC increased its position 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 valued at $771,000 after buying an additional 3,524 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 79.4% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,723,746 shares of the company's stock valued at $570,600,000 after buying an additional 2,533,006 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Paloma Partners Management Co boosted its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 729.4% in the third quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co now owns 47,500 shares of the company's stock worth $4,735,000 after acquiring an additional 41,773 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.15% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Hsbc Global Res downgraded Estée Lauder Companies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. CICC Research initiated coverage on Estée Lauder Companies in a research report on Friday, December 27th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $82.00 price target for the company. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $76.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, HSBC cut shares of Estée Lauder Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $100.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $90.05.

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.