The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) Short Interest Update

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 8,590,000 shares, an increase of 7.1% from the December 31st total of 8,020,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 4,570,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Performance

Shares of EL traded down $13.59 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $69.18. The stock had a trading volume of 8,306,643 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,449,048. 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 firm has a market cap of $24.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 123.68, a PEG ratio of 5.89 and a beta of 1.03. Estée Lauder Companies has a 52 week low of $62.29 and a 52 week high of $159.75. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $77.29 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.73.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.31. Estée Lauder Companies had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 17.31%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Estée Lauder Companies will post 1.5 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased 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. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Estée Lauder Companies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. CICC Research assumed coverage on Estée Lauder Companies in a research note on Friday, December 27th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $82.00 price target on the stock. Finally, B. Riley dropped their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $95.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Estée Lauder Companies has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $92.95.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Estée Lauder Companies news, Director Paul J. Fribourg bought 75,500 shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at $20,128,300. This trade represents a 32.20 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 12.78% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Estée Lauder Companies

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of EL. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 9.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,575,926 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,054,314,000 after purchasing an additional 913,470 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted 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 acquiring an additional 2,533,006 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 23.6% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 4,996,404 shares of the company’s stock worth $374,630,000 after acquiring an additional 954,493 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Estée Lauder Companies by 1.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,679,154 shares of the company’s stock valued at $464,587,000 after acquiring an additional 70,307 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 80.8% during the third 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 in the last quarter. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.