We recently published 12 Stocks on Jim Cramer’s Radar. The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer’s radar.
The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) is one of the largest cosmetics companies in the world. Its shares are up by 52% over the past year but are down by 6.8% year-to-date. Wells Fargo started the year on a strong note for the firm. It raised The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL)’s share price target to $111 from $95 and kept an Equal Weight rating on the shares in January. However, following the earnings report, Wells Fargo reduced the target price to $105 from $111. It pointed out that The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) experienced high expectations, which meant that the results had to be pitch-perfect. Cramer discussed the impact of China and the momentum the shares had experienced ahead of the earnings:
“Este Lauder ran up a lot, I think they’re being hurt by Chinese prices. But remember, Este Lauder went up a lot after we had a management change and then the company came back and it looked like it was going to roar. But I just don’t think they have the horses I would not own that stock, not one bit, no way, no hell. Don’t own it, they’re not coming back. . .oh my, I mean, this is, when you have these expensive products, the Chinese like some and they don’t like the others and Este Lauder’s in a lot of the wrong doors.”
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Hardman Johnston Global Equity Strategy also discussed The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL) in its third quarter 2025 investor letter:
“During the quarter, we initiated three new positions in The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE:EL), STMicroelectronics NV, and Prysmian S.P.A. Estee Lauder Companies Inc. is a leading player in a structurally attractive beauty industry that has been under-managed in recent years. Our investment thesis is supported by solid industry dynamics, with global beauty growing mid-single digits and luxury beauty growing faster. After a period of underperformance, Estée Lauder is taking steps to stabilize and regain market share. The company is successfully implementing “self-help” measures through restructuring and productivity improvements, recovering approximately 600 basis points in gross margin and over 1,000 basis points in operating margin. Combined with mid- to high-single-digit revenue growth and share gains, these improvements should drive strong double-digit earnings growth and support expanding valuation.”
While we acknowledge the potential of EL as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an extremely cheap AI stock that is also a major beneficiary of Trump tariffs and onshoring, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock.
