Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) Reaches New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $110.37 and last traded at $109.7740, with a volume of 728984 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $107.94.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on EL. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered shares of Estee Lauder Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $83.00 to $70.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Argus upgraded shares of Estee Lauder Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $85.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Estee Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Estee Lauder Companies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $95.14.

Estee Lauder Companies Stock Up 0.8%

The firm has a market cap of $39.22 billion, a P/E ratio of -42.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.18. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $96.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $89.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $3.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.38 billion. Estee Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 6.44% and a positive return on equity of 14.92%. The business’s revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.14 EPS. Estee Lauder Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.900-2.100 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Estee Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 28th were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 28th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Estee Lauder Companies’s payout ratio is -54.26%.

Insider Activity at Estee Lauder Companies

In related news, Director Barry S. Sternlicht sold 3,972 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.83, for a total transaction of $364,748.76. Following the sale, the director owned 34,812 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,196,785.96. This represents a 10.24% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Meridith Webster sold 5,430 shares of Estee Lauder Companies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.84, for a total transaction of $476,971.20. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 13.05% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Estee Lauder Companies

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Estee Lauder Companies in the second quarter worth about $189,663,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 3,181.4% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,312,535 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,781,000 after buying an additional 2,242,062 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 3,986.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,082,217 shares of the company’s stock worth $183,485,000 after buying an additional 2,031,262 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Estee Lauder Companies by 46.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 6,112,501 shares of the company’s stock worth $538,634,000 after acquiring an additional 1,937,107 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its holdings in Estee Lauder Companies by 593.3% during the 2nd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,211,624 shares of the company’s stock valued at $178,699,000 after acquiring an additional 1,892,629 shares during the period. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Estee 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.