Franklin Resources Inc. Acquires 45,687 Shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 47.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 141,804 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 45,687 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $13,392,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 79.4% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,723,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $570,600,000 after buying an additional 2,533,006 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 3,065.6% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,983,083 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000,000 after purchasing an additional 1,920,439 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 80.8% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,934,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $292,510,000 after purchasing an additional 1,310,900 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 36.4% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,041,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $402,938,000 after buying an additional 1,078,926 shares during the period. Finally, Independent Franchise Partners LLP increased its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 44.4% during the 2nd quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 3,466,048 shares of the company’s stock worth $368,788,000 after buying an additional 1,066,320 shares during the period. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:EL opened at $74.36 on Friday. 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 Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.29 and a 52-week high of $159.75. The company has a market capitalization of $26.69 billion, a PE ratio of 132.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.33 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a fifty day moving average of $76.39 and a 200-day moving average of $91.22.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $3.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.37 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 17.31%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.11 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 250.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $98.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Estée Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $125.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price target on Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Telsey Advisory Group restated a “market perform” rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Citigroup cut Estée Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.57.

Insider Buying and Selling at Estée Lauder Companies

In other news, CEO Fabrizio Freda sold 10,969 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 295,838 shares in the company, valued at $20,045,982.88. This trade represents a 3.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Paul J. Fribourg acquired 75,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $64.93 per share, with a total value of $4,902,215.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 310,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,128,300. This represents a 32.20 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 12.78% of the company’s stock.

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.