Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Buys 10,165 Shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its position in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 19.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 63,223 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 10,165 shares during the quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $6,303,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in EL. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,686,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,188,832,000 after buying an additional 1,250,555 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 36.4% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,041,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $402,938,000 after acquiring an additional 1,078,926 shares in the last quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 44.4% in the second quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 3,466,048 shares of the company’s stock worth $368,788,000 after acquiring an additional 1,066,320 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,163,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $487,612,000 after purchasing an additional 140,416 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $211,000,000 after purchasing an additional 1,920,439 shares during the last quarter. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Estée Lauder Companies

In related news, CEO Fabrizio Freda sold 10,969 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.76, for a total value of $743,259.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 295,838 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,045,982.88. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Lynn Forester sold 3,890 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were 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 $1,423,714.49. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Fabrizio Freda sold 10,969 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.76, for a total transaction of $743,259.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 295,838 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,045,982.88. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 18,296 shares of company stock valued at $1,423,366 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 12.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Estée Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays decreased their price objective on Estée Lauder Companies from $136.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res downgraded Estée Lauder Companies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $100.90.

Estée Lauder Companies Price Performance

EL stock opened at $66.31 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The company’s 50-day moving average is $88.41 and its 200-day moving average is $104.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.79 billion, a PE ratio of 119.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.05. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 1 year low of $62.88 and a 1 year high of $159.75.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.05. Estée Lauder Companies had a return on equity of 17.31% and a net margin of 1.31%. The firm had revenue of $3.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.11 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 471.43%.

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.