E.l.f. Beauty remains top pick at D.A. Davidson with Black Friday sales putting company on track to beat full-year consensus

E.l.f. Beauty Inc. (ELF) remains D.A. Davidson's top pick and could beat consensus estimates for fiscal 2024, after the beauty brand's point-of-sales tracked at up 43.3% in November from a year ago. That suggests consensus sales growth of about 42% is "reasonable and potentially beatable," analysts Linda Bolton Weiser and Christina Xue wrote in a note published Monday. At a Target store the analysts visited in upstate New York on Black Friday, E.l.f.'s shelf space had increased to 14 feet, putting it on equal footing with the number two brand, L'Oreal. "ELF had one of the six beauty end-caps at Target, with several $5-$6 items displayed, which were moving well given consumers' value-seeking behavior," said the note. The analysts are expecting E.l.f.'s fiscal 2024 EBITDA could come in at about $230 million, well ahead of the $209 million consensus. The analysts have a buy rating on the stock and a $178 price target, or about 56% above its current price. The stock has gained 107% in the year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 18.8%.

-Ciara Linnane

This content was created by MarketWatch, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. MarketWatch is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

11-27-23 0730ET

Copyright (c) 2023 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.