Symmetry Investments LP Acquires Shares of 10,818 The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Symmetry Investments LP purchased a new stake in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 10,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $811,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EL. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 68.7% during the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 388 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 297.0% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 401 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 42.1% during the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 476 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.15% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Estée Lauder Companies news, CFO Akhil Shrivastava purchased 700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $65.79 per share, with a total value of $46,053.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,381 shares in the company, valued at $156,645.99. This trade represents a 41.64 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg purchased 43,000 shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $66.35 per share, with a total value of $2,853,050.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 430,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $28,583,580. This trade represents a 11.09 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 12.78% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on EL shares. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on Estée Lauder Companies from $76.00 to $70.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. CICC Research assumed coverage on Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Friday, December 27th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $82.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $76.00 target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $81.57.

Estée Lauder Companies Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of EL stock opened at $55.98 on Wednesday. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 12-month low of $48.37 and a 12-month high of $149.91. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $64.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75. The company has a market capitalization of $20.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -28.71, a P/E/G ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Estée Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Estée Lauder Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently -71.79%.

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.

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