Estee Lauder price target lowered to $155 from $175 at Raymond James

Raymond James analyst Olivia Tong lowered the firm’s price target on Estee Lauder (EL) to $155 from $175 and keeps a Strong Buy rating on the shares. Despite a big beat in Q3 EPS, Estee Lauder’s outlook for 2H was underwhelming, with a combination of a more gradual recovery in sales and a shift in marketing from to the fourth quarter from the third that muted the impact of the beat on the fiscal year, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The hill Estee Lauder must climb to restore investor confidence just got higher, but there are a number of factors that should drive improved results over the next 12 months, including that the first products developed at the China innovation lab will launch, catering better to the local consumer, and that the U.S. is better positioned with distribution increasing, starting with Clinique on Amazon (AMZN), Raymond James argues.