Analysts at Argus turned bullish on Estee Lauder Companies Inc (NYSE: EL) after the company impressed investors in its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings
report. The firm's John Staszak upgrades Estee Lauder's stock
rating from Hold to Buy with a $125 price target as the earnings report suggests ongoing momentum moving forward.
The beauty market is seeing strong demand especially in the high-end
category which bodes well for Estee Lauder as evidenced by one-third of its brands
showing double digit growth in the quarter, Staszak noted. The company also saw overall strength in e-commerce and "travel sales"
at major airport.
Looking forward the beauty company thinks it deliver a local-currency revenue growth of up to 8 percent and double-digit
earnings growth over the next three years, the analyst continued. These should be considered to be achievable targets and the
analyst's long-term earnings growth rate of 14 percent remains unchanged.
Meanwhile, Estee Lauder's reputation of steadily raising its dividend, which yields around 1.3 percent, should remain in place
moving forward.
Finally, Estee Lauder's strong performance in the quarter also prompted the analyst to raise his rating on the entire consumer
staples sector from Underweight to Market Weight. Investors are also encouraged to allocate up to 10 percent of their investments
to this group.
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Latest Ratings for EL
Date |
Firm |
Action |
From |
To |
Aug 2017 |
Argus |
Upgrades |
Hold |
Buy |
Aug 2017 |
Bank of America |
Maintains |
|
Buy |
Aug 2017 |
Deutsche Bank |
Maintains |
|
Buy |
View More Analyst Ratings for
EL
View the Latest Analyst Ratings
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