ELESTEE LAUDER COMPANIES INC

Perfumes, Cosmetics & Other Toilet Preparations

Revenue: $15.0B; 5.0% YoY
Operating margin: 5.2%; 195% YoY
EBITDA: $1.6B; 3482% YoY
Market cap: $39.8B
Employees: 1,100; $14M revenue each
Net debt / EBITDA: 3.3×; $5.1B net debt
AI in 10-K: 2.2; mentions per 10K words

Takeover score 2 of 13

Fixable underperformance 1 of 7

TSR below peersYes
5 of 5 years
3+ of last 5 years
High CEO pay despite TSRNo
—
Median CEO pay ≥ $15M while TSR trails
Earnings not backed by cashNo
974% of net income
Cash flow under 80% of net income
Dilutive SBCNo
2% of revenue
Over 10% of revenue
Payouts exceed cash flowNo
33% of cash flow
Buybacks + dividends over cash flow
Goodwill-heavyNo
11% of assets
Over 40% of assets
Shareholder dissentNo
91% lowest support
Any vote under 80% support

Buyer economics 0 of 4

Low revenue per employeeNo
$14M · 100th pct
Bottom quartile of its SIC industry
Quiet on AINo
2.2 per 10K words · 59th pct
Bottom quartile of AI mentions in 10-Ks
Net cashNo
3.3× EBITDA net debt
More cash than debt, positive EBITDA
Buyout-sizedNo
$39.8B market cap
Market cap $500M–$5B

Catalysts 1 of 2

Active 13DNo
0 filings
Active-intent 13D in 18 months
Net insider sellingYes
−$1.0B net
Net sales over $10M in 12 months

Financials

Metric	FY2022	FY2023	FY2024	FY2025	FY2026	YoY	Trend
Revenue	$17.7B	$15.9B	$15.6B	$14.3B	$15.0B	5.0%
Operating income	$3.2B	$1.5B	$970M	−$785M	$780M	199%
Net income	$2.4B	$1.0B	$409M	−$1.1B	$182M	116%
Operating cash flow	$3.0B	$1.7B	$2.4B	$1.3B	$1.8B	39%
Capex	$1.0B	$1.0B	$919M	$602M	$457M	24%
Stock-based comp	$331M	$267M	$325M	$304M	$310M	2.0%
Buybacks	$2.3B	$271M	$35M	$35M	$70M	100%
Dividends	$840M	$925M	$947M	$618M	$508M	18%

Deal filings

None.

13D filers

Filed	Filer	Form	Stake	Intent
Sep 18, 2026	TRUST UNDER ARTICLE 2 OF THE ZINTERHOFER 2008 DESCENDANTS TRUST AGREEMENT	SCHEDULE 13D/A	1.9%	Passive
May 28, 2026	LAUDER AERIN	SCHEDULE 13D/A	7.2%	Passive
Apr 10, 2026	LAUDER AERIN	SCHEDULE 13D/A	7.2%	Passive
Nov 14, 2025	Leonard A. Lauder 2013 Revocable Trust	SCHEDULE 13D/A	0.0%	Passive
Nov 6, 2025	Roaring Fork Trust Company, Inc.	SCHEDULE 13D	0.0%	Passive
Nov 5, 2025	Leonard A. Lauder 2013 Revocable Trust	SCHEDULE 13D/A	0.0%	Passive
Dec 10, 2024	LAUDER AERIN	SC 13D/A	6.1%	Passive
Dec 9, 2024	LAUDER JANE	SC 13D/A	8.9%	Passive
Dec 9, 2024	Lauder Jane A. Trust u/a/d 11/6/2003	SC 13D/A	6.8%	Passive
Feb 14, 2022	Leonard A. Lauder 2013 Revocable Trust	SC 13D/A	0.1%	Passive

Insider trading

Open-market buys, 12 mo: $0 · 0
Open-market sells, 12 mo: $1.0B · 14
Net: −$1.0B

Pay vs performance

Year	CEO total comp	Comp actually paid	TSR (indexed)	Peer TSR
FY2026	—	—	27	146
FY2025	—	—	27	138
FY2024	—	—	35	123
FY2023	—	—	63	114
FY2022	—	—	81	107