Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Estee Lauder Companies Call Options (NYSE:EL)

The Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) saw unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock investors purchased 37,897 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 833% compared to the average daily volume of 4,063 call options.

Estee Lauder Companies Trading Up 0.6%

EL stock traded up $0.66 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $105.19. The company had a trading volume of 1,042,900 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,777,447. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The company has a market capitalization of $38.06 billion, a PE ratio of 214.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.27. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $96.88 and a 200 day moving average of $86.91. Estee Lauder Companies has a 12 month low of $66.22 and a 12 month high of $121.64.

Estee Lauder Companies (NYSE:EL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 19th. The company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.55 billion. Estee Lauder Companies had a net margin of 1.21% and a return on equity of 23.52%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.09 earnings per share. Estee Lauder Companies has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.100-3.350 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Estee Lauder Companies will post 3.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Estee Lauder Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 285.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Estee Lauder Companies from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. China Intl Cap raised shares of Estee Lauder Companies to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 30th. Wall Street Zen lowered Estee Lauder Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 26th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Estee Lauder Companies from $95.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Estee Lauder Companies from $94.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $106.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Estee Lauder Companies news, VP Rashida La Lande sold 7,766 shares of Estee Lauder Companies stock in a transaction on Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.32, for a total transaction of $802,383.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 14,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,483,365.24. The trade was a 35.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul Fribourg sold 58,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.17, for a total transaction of $5,693,860.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 417,300 shares in the company, valued at $40,966,341. This trade represents a 12.20% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 75,105 shares of company stock worth $7,423,185 over the last three months. 11.54% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Estee Lauder Companies

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. New England Research & Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Estee Lauder Companies during the third quarter valued at $473,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 15.4% in the third quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 21,273 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,920,000 after acquiring an additional 2,845 shares during the period. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Estee Lauder Companies in the third quarter worth about $366,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its stake in Estee Lauder Companies by 6.3% in the third quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 7,488 shares of the company’s stock worth $695,000 after acquiring an additional 445 shares during the period. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd bought a new position in Estee Lauder Companies during the 3rd quarter worth about $134,551,000. 55.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.