The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,050,000 shares, an increase of 12.5% from the October 15th total of 4,490,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 4,830,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.0 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. B. Riley reduced their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $95.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. HSBC downgraded 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. Bank of America dropped their price target 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on Estée Lauder Companies from $98.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $100.90.

Estée Lauder Companies Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:EL traded up $0.84 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $64.59. 3,267,012 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,461,230. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $84.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $100.34. Estée Lauder Companies has a 12 month low of $62.29 and a 12 month high of $159.75. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $23.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 113.84, a P/E/G ratio of 3.85 and a beta of 1.05.

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. Analysts predict that Estée Lauder Companies will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Estée Lauder Companies Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 250.00%.

Insider Activity at Estée Lauder Companies

In other Estée Lauder Companies news, CEO Fabrizio Freda sold 10,969 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.76, for a total transaction of $743,259.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 295,838 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,045,982.88. The trade was a 3.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lynn Forester sold 3,890 shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.61, for a total value of $364,142.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 15,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,423,714.49. This represents a 20.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,296 shares of company stock valued at $1,423,366. 12.78% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Estée Lauder Companies

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 6.3% during the second quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,144 shares of the company’s stock worth $228,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the period. Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. lifted its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. now owns 7,109 shares of the company’s stock valued at $756,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 30.9% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 639 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN grew its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 22.3% during the second quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 844 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 4.6% in the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $562,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.15% 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, and powders, as well as compacts, brushes, and other makeup tools.