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The Estée Lauder Companies (EL) Risk Analysis
Risk Overview Q1, 2025
Source: the company's latest filing for the period ended Mar 31, 2025, filed May 01, 2025
Risk Change Over Time
- Cyber Security - Risk 1Our information technology and websites may be susceptible to cybersecurity breaches, outages and other risks.
We rely on information technology that supports our business processes, including product development, marketing, sales, order processing, production, distribution, finance and intracompany communications throughout the world. We have e-commerce, m-commerce and other Internet websites in the United States and many other countries. These systems may be susceptible to outages due to fire, floods, power loss, telecommunications failures, break-ins and other events. Our systems and data may be vulnerable to constantly evolving cybersecurity threats such as malware, break-ins and similar disruptions from unauthorized tampering. The occurrence of these or other events could disrupt or damage our information technology, including operational technology, and adversely affect our business. Insurance policies that may provide coverage with regard to such events may not cover any or all of the resulting financial losses.
- Cyber Security - Risk 2Failure to adequately maintain the security of our electronic and other confidential information could materially adversely affect our business.
We are dependent upon automated information technology processes. As part of our normal business activities, we collect and store certain information that is confidential, proprietary or otherwise sensitive, including personal information with respect to customers, consumers and employees. We share some of this information with certain vendors who assist us with business matters. Moreover, the success of our e-commerce and m-commerce operations depends upon the secure transmission of confidential and personal data over public networks, including the use of cashless payments. Any failure on the part of us or our vendors to maintain the security of our confidential data and personal information, including via the penetration of our network security and the misappropriation of confidential and personal information, could result in business disruption, damage to our reputation, financial obligations to third parties, fines, penalties, regulatory proceedings and private litigation with potentially large costs, and also result in deterioration in our employees', consumers' and customers' confidence in us and other competitive disadvantages, and thus could have a material adverse effect on our business. In addition, a security or data privacy breach could require that we expend significant additional resources to enhance our information security systems and could result in a disruption to our operations. Furthermore, third parties, including our suppliers and customers, also rely on information technology and may be subject to cybersecurity breaches that could impact their businesses and could in turn disrupt our supply chain and/or our business.
- Technology - Risk 3We are subject to risks associated with our global information technology.
Our implementation, maintenance and utilization of global information technology, including operational technology, supply chain and finance systems, human resource management systems, creative asset management and retail operating systems, as well as associated hardware and use of cloud-based models, involve risks and uncertainties. Failure to implement, maintain or utilize these and other systems as planned, in terms of timing, specifications, security policies, costs, or otherwise, could have a material adverse effect on our business.
Risk Highlights Q1, 2025
Risk Word Cloud
Risk Factors Full Breakdown - Total Risks 18
- Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 1We are a "controlled company" within the meaning of the New York Stock Exchange rules and, as a result, are relying on exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements that are designed to provide protection to stockholders of companies that are not "controlled companies."
The Lauder family and their related entities own more than 50% of the total voting power of our common shares and, as a result, we are a "controlled company" under the New York Stock Exchange corporate governance standards. As a controlled company, we are exempt under the New York Stock Exchange standards from the obligation to comply with certain New York Stock Exchange corporate governance requirements, including the requirements that (1) a majority of our board of directors consists of independent directors; (2) we have a nominating committee that is composed entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee's purpose and responsibilities; and (3) we have a compensation committee that is composed entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee's purpose and responsibilities. While we have voluntarily caused our Board of Directors to have a majority of independent directors and the written charters of our Nominating and ESG Committee and Compensation Committee to have the required provisions, we are not requiring our Nominating and ESG Committee and Compensation Committee to be comprised solely of independent directors. As a result of our use of the "controlled company" exemptions, investors will not have the same protection afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the New York Stock Exchange corporate governance requirements.
- Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 2We are controlled by the Lauder family. As a result, the Lauder family has the ability to prevent or cause a change in control or approve, prevent or influence certain actions by us.
As of August 12, 2024, members of the Lauder family beneficially own, directly or indirectly, shares of the Company's Class A Common Stock (with one vote per share) and Class B Common Stock (with 10 votes per share) having approximately 84% of the outstanding voting power of the Common Stock. In addition, four members of the Lauder family are on our Board of Directors (three of whom are executive officers). A fifth member of the Lauder family is an executive officer. As a result of their stock ownership and positions at the Company, as well as our dual-class structure, the Lauder family has the ability to exercise significant control and influence over our business, including all matters requiring stockholder approval (e.g., the election of directors, amendments to the certificate of incorporation, and significant corporate transactions, such as a merger or other sale of our Company or its assets) for the foreseeable future. In addition, if significant stock indices decide to prohibit the inclusion of companies with dual-class stock structures, the price of our Class A Common Stock could be negatively impacted and could become more volatile.
- Share Price & Shareholder Rights - Risk 3The trading prices of our securities periodically may rise or fall based on the accuracy of predictions of our financial performance.
Our business planning process is designed to maximize our long-term strength, growth and profitability, not to achieve an earnings target in any particular fiscal quarter. We believe this longer-term focus is in the best interests of the Company and our stockholders. At the same time, however, we recognize it may be helpful to provide investors with guidance as to our expectations regarding certain aspects of our business. This could include forecasts of net sales, earnings per share and other financial metrics or projections. We assume no responsibility to provide or update guidance, and any longer-term guidance we may provide is based on goals we believe, at the time guidance is given, are reasonably attainable for growth and performance over a number of years. We historically have paid dividends on our common stock and repurchased shares of our Class A Common Stock; however, at times we have suspended the declaration of dividends and/or the repurchase of our Class A Common Stock. Going forward, at any time, we could stop, suspend or change the amounts of dividends or stop or suspend our stock repurchase program, and any such action could cause the market price of our stock to decline. In all of our public statements when we make, or update, a forward-looking statement about our business, whether it be about net sales or earnings expectations or expectations regarding restructuring or other initiatives, or otherwise, we accompany such statements directly, or by reference to a public document, with a list of factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those we expect. Such a list is included, among other places, in our earnings press release and in our periodic filings with the SEC (e.g., in our reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q). These and other factors may make it difficult for us and for outside observers, such as research analysts, to predict what our earnings or other financial metrics, or business outcomes, will be in any given fiscal quarter or year. Outside analysts and investors have the right to make their own predictions of our business for any future period. Outside analysts, however, have access to no more material information about our results or plans than any other public investor, and we do not endorse their predictions as to our future performance. Nor do we assume any responsibility to correct the predictions of outside analysts or others when they differ from our own internal expectations. If our actual results differ from those that outside analysts or others have been predicting, the market price of our securities could be affected. Investors who rely on the predictions of outside analysts or others when making investment decisions with respect to our securities do so at their own risk. We take no responsibility for any losses suffered as a result of such changes in the prices of our securities.
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