Estee Lauder

Estee Lauder CFO Says Full Year 2024 Operating Margin Outlook Remains Unchanged And Is Expected To Be Between 9%-9.5%.

By Sabela Ojea Estee Lauder is scheduled to report earnings for its fiscal second quarter before the market opens on Monday. Here’s what you need to know: –PROFIT: Estee Lauder is expected to post a profit of $182 million, or 51 cents a share, according to FactSet. This compares with a reported profit of $394 million, or $1.09 a share, for the same period a year earlier. –ADJUSTED PROFIT: Stripping out one-time items, the cosmetics giant’s earnings are forecast to be 54 cents, according to FactSet. –SALES: The company’s sales are expected to drop to $4.19 billion, according to FactSet. This compares with reported sales of $4.62 billion for the prior year. The stock has jumped 20% in the past three months, but it has plunged over 50% over the past 12 months. WHAT TO WATCH: –Any potential progress made in China will be key to Estee Lauder’s prospects after

Estee Lauder’s ability reclaim its historical level of steady growth is being questioned by RBC Capital Markets in a research note. The analysts say to get there the cosmetics giant needs to modernize its brands and portfolio strategy and may need another restructuring. The believe guidance seems appropriate for the current situation, but they say stock is likely pricing in a faster recovery to top-line than current thinking allows. Furthermore, the narrative on the stock has been focused around its travel retail recovery, but investors should also focus on how the company’s brands adapt to the evolving beauty market. Shares are off 0.2% to $134.54.

Estee Lauder Cos (NYSE:EL) is set to give its latest quarterly earnings report on Monday, 2024-02-05. Here’s what investors need to know before the announcement. Analysts estimate that Estee Lauder Cos will report an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.55. Estee Lauder Cos bulls will hope to hear the company announce they’ve not only beaten that estimate, but also to provide positive guidance, or forecasted growth, for the next quarter. New investors should note that it is sometimes not an earnings beat or miss that most affects the price of a stock, but the guidance (or forecast).

There is no ‘silver bullet’ to drive a faster rebound in China, but the restoration of Estee Lauder’s sales growth should be supported by more substantial innovation across its biggest and newest brands, Raymond James analysts say in a research note. Near-term visibility around the beauty retailer remains challenging, but it should be better positioned for growth once its profit recovery bears fruit. “While shares may be volatile in the near-term, we maintain our strong buy rating,” analysts say, noting that they believe Estee Lauder’s long-term earnings should be stronger when margins are repaired and top-line growth is closer to $6. Shares rise 0.2% to $128 in after-hours trading.

Estee Lauder (NYSE:EL) Stock Analyst Ratings Date Upside/Downside Analyst Firm Price Target Change Rating Change Previous / Current Rating 01/16/2024 -6.53% Barclays $101 → $121 Maintains Equal-Weight 11/29/2023 25.92% DA Davidson $146 → $163 Maintains Buy 11/28/2023 39.05% HSBC → $180 Initiates Coverage On → Buy 11/08/2023 -7.3% TD Cowen → $120 Downgrades Outperform → Market Perform 11/03/2023 -8.85% Berenberg $224 → $118 Downgrades Buy → Hold 11/02/2023 12.78% DA Davidson $185 → $146 Maintains Buy 11/02/2023 -8.85% JP Morgan $173 → $118 Maintains Overweight 11/02/2023 3.51% Morgan Stanley $200 → $134 Maintains Overweight 11/02/2023 8.92% Goldman Sachs $185 → $141 Maintains Buy 11/02/2023 -11.16% Telsey Advisory Group $210 → $115 Downgrades Outperform → Market Perform 11/02/2023 -11.16% RBC Capital $195 → $115 Downgrades Outperform → Sector Perform 10/26/2023 62.22% Telsey Advisory Group → $210 Reiterates Outperform → Outperform 10/23/2023 39.05% Raymond James $195 → $180 Maintains Strong Buy 10/17/2023

Estée Lauder’s founding family and board are divided about how to regain investors’ confidence after seeing its stock price plunge by 50% this year. Chairman Emeritus Leonard Lauder, who built his mother’s company into an empire, and some board members, are dissatisfied with CEO Fabrizio Freda, according to people familiar with the matter. Freda’s biggest supporter remains Executive Chairman William Lauder, the people said. Jane Lauder, family member and marketing executive at her grandmother’s company, and Executive Group President Stéphane de la Faverie, are on the shortlist of internal CEO contenders. Some board members are considering external candidates in addition to internal ones to succeed Freda, the people said.

Estée Lauder’s decision to invest roughly $1 billion in a new manufacturing plant in Japan to further support Chinese sales may hamper profits as the company reduces production levels. The beauty company built the factory to eventually manufacture about 300 million units a year, but it’s only expected to produce tens of millions of units in 2024. In the September quarter, the company posted about a 20% drop in skin-care sales, mainly driven by China and its travel retail business. Other big companies are confronting a China slump. P&G, owner of Japanese skin care brand SK-II, and Tokyo-based rival Shiseido have seen sales declines in China after consumers turned away from Japanese merchandise after Japan started to release water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean.

JPMorgan analyst Andrea Teixeira maintains Estee Lauder Cos (NYSE:EL) with a Overweight and lowers the price target from $173 to $118.

Estee Lauder’s guidance cut for the year proves demand trends have worsened sequentially in Mainland China, and not only at the Asian country’s travel retail destinations, JPMorgan analysts say in a research note. The key to the cosmetics company’s recovery will be to clear excess inventory in both travel retail and at department stores in Mainland China, and the elimination of discounts to eliminate daigous, also known as personal shoppers. JPMorgan cuts its target price to $$118 from $173.

Estée Lauder Q1 Adj. EPS $0.11 Vs $(0.20) Est., Net Sales $3.52B Vs $3.529B Est.

Estée Lauder Sees FY24 Reported Net Sales Down 2% To Up 1%, Sees Adj. EPS Down 25-33% On Constant Currency Basis。