NorthRock Partners LLC Invests $314,000 in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

NorthRock Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 4,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $314,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Estée Lauder Companies by 163.8% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,382,579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,078,406,000 after acquiring an additional 8,930,011 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $554,509,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Estée Lauder Companies during the fourth quarter worth $251,304,000. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 11,026.8% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,343,607 shares of the company’s stock worth $250,704,000 after purchasing an additional 3,313,557 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Estée Lauder Companies by 148.9% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,481,248 shares of the company’s stock worth $410,984,000 after purchasing an additional 3,278,632 shares during the period. 55.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

EL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and set a $81.00 target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $70.00 to $60.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their target price on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $70.00 to $62.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, B. Riley reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $60.00 target price (down from $70.00) on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $75.20.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Up 2.4%

Estée Lauder Companies stock opened at $65.19 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.45 billion, a P/E ratio of -33.43, a P/E/G ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.37. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a one year low of $48.37 and a one year high of $134.63.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.36. The firm had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.51 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 4.61% and a positive return on equity of 16.82%. Estée Lauder Companies’s revenue was down 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.97 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Estée Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.15%. Estée Lauder Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently -57.85%.

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, and powders, as well as compacts, brushes, and other makeup tools.