Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.21 EPS

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.21, Zacks reports. Estee Lauder Companies had a net margin of 1.21% and a return on equity of 23.52%.

Estee Lauder Companies Stock Performance

EL opened at $109.35 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $39.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 223.16, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79. The company’s 50 day moving average is $100.36 and its 200 day moving average is $91.92. Estee Lauder Companies has a 12-month low of $66.22 and a 12-month high of $121.64.

Estee Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st were paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 31st. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Estee Lauder Companies’s payout ratio is currently 285.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Estee Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 26th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Estee Lauder Companies from $104.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Daiwa Securities Group lifted their target price on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $83.00 to $99.00 in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $106.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at Estee Lauder Companies

In related news, Director Paul J. Fribourg sold 58,000 shares of Estee Lauder Companies stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.17, for a total value of $5,693,860.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 417,300 shares in the company, valued at $40,966,341. The trade was a 12.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Charlene Barshefsky sold 3,775 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.82, for a total transaction of $373,045.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 50,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,036,954.22. The trade was a 6.90% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 75,105 shares of company stock valued at $7,423,185 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 11.54% of the company’s stock.

About Estee Lauder Companies

The Estée Lauder Companies Inc (NYSE: EL) is a global prestige beauty company that develops, markets and sells skincare, makeup, fragrance and hair-care products. Its portfolio includes brands such as Estée Lauder, Clinique, M·A·C, La Mer, Jo Malone London, Aveda, Bobbi Brown Cosmetics, Tom Ford Beauty, Le Labo and The Ordinary.

Founded in 1946 by Estée and Joseph Lauder, the company began with four skincare products and has expanded into a multinational beauty business. Its products are sold through department and specialty stores, beauty retailers, brand-operated stores, e-commerce platforms, salons, spas and other distribution channels.

The Estée Lauder Companies serves consumers in markets across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Asia-Pacific.