Van ECK Associates Corp Purchases 318,257 Shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) by 12.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,962,985 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 318,257 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp owned about 0.83% of Estée Lauder Companies worth $315,262,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,689,000. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 121.8% in the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $190,000 after acquiring an additional 715 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 148,812 shares of the company's stock worth $21,787,000 after acquiring an additional 11,761 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $216,000. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 1,173 shares of the company's stock worth $172,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. 55.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock traded up $1.74 on Friday, reaching $91.66. 2,653,517 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,954,609. The company has a 50-day moving average of $98.81 and a 200 day moving average of $124.19. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a one year low of $86.05 and a one year high of $165.76. The company has a market capitalization of $32.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.49, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 19th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $3.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.80 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a return on equity of 16.91% and a net margin of 2.50%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.07 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Estée Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. Estée Lauder Companies's payout ratio is 148.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EL has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $136.00 to $117.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of Estée Lauder Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Estée Lauder Companies from $140.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. DA Davidson reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $180.00 to $130.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Estée Lauder Companies presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $122.77.

Insider Buying and Selling at Estée Lauder Companies

In related news, Director Charlene Barshefsky sold 3,437 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.93, for a total transaction of $315,963.41. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 49,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,578,114. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director Lynn Forester sold 3,890 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.61, for a total transaction of $364,142.90. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 15,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,423,714.49. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Charlene Barshefsky sold 3,437 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.93, for a total value of $315,963.41. Following the sale, the director now owns 49,800 shares in the company, valued at $4,578,114. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 12.77% of the company's stock.

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, nail polishes, and powders, as well as compacts, brushes, and other makeup tools.