Bank of Montreal Can Buys 23,304 Shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 5.2% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 469,410 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 23,304 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $49,945,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the first quarter worth $26,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 103.1% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 195 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 163.0% in the 1st quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 263 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 3,262.5% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 269 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares during the period. 55.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Estée Lauder Companies Trading Down 0.4 %

EL opened at $91.61 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $32.86 billion, a PE ratio of 51.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a twelve month low of $82.39 and a twelve month high of $159.75. The company has a fifty day moving average of $92.45 and a 200-day moving average of $116.92.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 19th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.39. The firm 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 business’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.07 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 2.97 EPS for the current year.

Estée Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th were issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. Estée Lauder Companies’s payout ratio is 148.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on EL shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $115.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Estée Lauder Companies from $165.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $100.00 target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $120.27.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 stock was sold at an average price of $93.61, for a total transaction of $364,142.90. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,423,714.49. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Estée Lauder Companies news, Director Lynn Forester sold 3,890 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.61, for a total transaction of $364,142.90. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,423,714.49. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Charlene Barshefsky sold 3,437 shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was 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. Corporate 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.