S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC Has $10.24 Million Holdings in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

S.E.E.D. Planning Group LLC raised its stake in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) by 16.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 136,566 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 19,017 shares during the period. Estée Lauder Companies accounts for approximately 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 and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of EL. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC raised its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 297.0% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 401 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Ecofi Investissements SA acquired a new position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 752.9% during the 3rd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 580 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 512 shares in the last quarter. 55.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America lowered their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. HSBC downgraded shares of Estée Lauder Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $100.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $95.00 to $70.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, CICC Research assumed coverage on Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Friday, December 27th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $82.00 target price for the company. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $96.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Fabrizio Freda sold 10,969 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.76, for a total value of $743,259.44. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 295,838 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,045,982.88. The trade was a 3.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 77,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $64.01 per share, with a total value of $4,960,775.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 234,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,010,345. This trade represents a 49.36 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 12.78% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock traded up $0.70 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $74.57. 2,252,467 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,030,544. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 12 month low of $62.29 and a 12 month high of $159.75. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $73.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $85.96. The company has a market capitalization of $26.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 133.16, a P/E/G ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 1.02. 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 - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.37 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 1.31%. Estée Lauder Companies's quarterly revenue was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.11 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. Estée Lauder Companies's payout ratio is currently 250.00%.

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.