PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Buys 32,350 Shares of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) by 48.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 99,660 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 32,350 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Estée Lauder Companies were worth $7,472,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of EL. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. bought a new position in Estée Lauder Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators lifted its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 68.7% during the fourth quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 388 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC lifted its position in Estée Lauder Companies by 297.0% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 401 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Estée Lauder Companies during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 55.15% of the company’s stock.

Estée Lauder Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:EL opened at $69.60 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $74.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -35.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.09 and a beta of 1.08. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. has a 1 year low of $62.29 and a 1 year high of $159.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Estée Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $4 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.98 billion. Estée Lauder Companies had a negative net margin of 4.61% and a positive return on equity of 16.82%. The company’s revenue was down 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. will post 1.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Estée Lauder Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. Estée Lauder Companies’s payout ratio is presently -71.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Estée Lauder Companies news, Director Paul J. Fribourg acquired 43,000 shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $66.35 per share, with a total value of $2,853,050.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 430,800 shares in the company, valued at $28,583,580. This trade represents a 11.09 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Akhil Shrivastava acquired 700 shares of Estée Lauder Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $65.79 per share, for a total transaction of $46,053.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer now owns 2,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $156,645.99. The trade was a 41.64 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 12.78% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EL has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $74.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $71.00 to $64.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $91.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Estée Lauder Companies from $85.00 to $81.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of Estée Lauder Companies in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Estée Lauder Companies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.00.

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.