The Surprising Story Behind Who Owns elf Cosmetics in 2025

Elf Cosmetics stands as a publicly traded powerhouse on the NYSE under the ticker symbol ELF in 2025. Institutional investors hold about 93% of the company's ownership, and it continues to dominate the beauty industry.

The company's growth story began in 2004, and it has evolved into the leading brand in U.S. cosmetics units and ranks second in dollar share. e.l.f. Beauty, the parent company, posted strong financial results with net global sales climbing 28% to $1.3 billion in its fiscal year ending March 2025. The company's efficient cost management helped achieve a remarkable 71% gross margin for fiscal year 2024.

e.l.f. Beauty expanded its portfolio by signing a deal to acquire Hailey Bieber's beauty brand, rhode, for $1 billion. The deal structure includes $800 million in cash and stock at closing, plus a possible $200 million earnout tied to future growth. This move builds on their $355 million acquisition of Naturium in 2023, showing the company's dedication to growth through strategic deals.

This piece delves into e.l.f. Cosmetics' ownership structure, tracks its path from startup to beauty industry leader, and shows how its latest acquisitions shape its future in the competitive beauty market.

The current ownership of e.l.f. Cosmetics

e.l.f. Cosmetics operates as a brand under e.l.f. Beauty, Inc., a company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) with the ticker symbol ELF. The company's shareholder structure had 55,939,080 Stock A shares with one vote each by December 2023. This included 53,820,668 free-float shares, while the company kept a 3.04% stake.

Who owns e.l.f. Cosmetics in 2025?

Institutional investors, company insiders, and retail investors share e.l.f. Cosmetics' ownership. About 670 institutional owners hold most of e.l.f. Beauty's shares. Blackrock leads as the largest institutional shareholder with an 11.74% stake and 6.52 million shares. The Vanguard Group comes second with 9.88%. Other major institutional investors include Wellington Management at 4.71%, State Street Corp at 3.48%, and Price T.Rowe Associates at 3.31%.

The core team owns 3.01% of the company. CEO Tarang Amin leads the insider shareholders with 1,183,400 shares as of April 2024. Head of Sales & Marketing Kory Marchisotto holds 131,977 shares and General Counsel Scott Milsten owns 111,870 shares.

What company owns e.l.f. Cosmetics?

e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. owns e.l.f. Cosmetics. This multi-brand beauty company has grown a lot since 2004, starting as an affordable makeup brand that sold products online. The company changed direction on February 3, 2014, after TPG Growth bought a majority stake. This led to Tarang P. Amin replacing Joey Shamah as president, chief executive officer, and director.

Who makes e.l.f. Cosmetics products?

e.l.f. Beauty's brand portfolio has grown steadily and now has:

• e.l.f. Cosmetics

• e.l.f. SKIN

• Naturium (acquired in 2023 for $355 million)

• Well People

• Keys Soulcare (created with singer-songwriter Alicia Keys)

The company plans to buy Hailey Bieber's Rhode skincare brand in a $1 billion deal, which will expand its manufacturing and product lineup.

The journey from startup to public company

The story of e.l.f. Cosmetics began in 2004. Joseph Shamah and Scott Vincent Borba created the company with help from Joseph's father, Alan. "e.l.f." represents Eyes, Lips, Face—a reflection of the company's original product focus.

Founding story and early days

A simple observation sparked the company's creation. Co-founder Borba noticed luxury cars parked outside 99-cent makeup stores. "I saw all these women with Louis Vuitton purses, and they were just buying truckloads of lip balms and nail polishes," he recalled. This observation revealed a market gap to provide quality cosmetics at affordable prices.

The company launched with just 13 products to offer an affordable alternative to high-end brands. Shamah expressed the company's straightforward philosophy: "We feel women shouldn't have to skip lunch or not go out for dinner or have other cutbacks to afford makeup".

Going public and what changed

A fundamental change happened in February 2014. TPG Growth bought a majority stake for between $200-300 million. This purchase brought Tarang Amin to replace Joey Shamah as CEO.

e.l.f. Beauty made its mark on Wall Street in September 2016. The company priced 8.3 million shares at $17 each—higher than its expected $14-16 range. The IPO turned into a soaring win as shares jumped 56% on the first trading day, pushing the company's value beyond $1 billion. The $114 million raised helped expand operations and add more brick-and-mortar locations.

Leadership under Tarang Amin

Tarang Amin's leadership has transformed e.l.f. Beauty significantly. The company's shareholder equity grew from $135 million to over $8 billion since going public in 2016. Amin brought valuable experience from his successful roles at Schiff Nutrition, Clorox Company, and Procter & Gamble.

Amin built a company culture that mirrors its diverse customer base. e.l.f. Beauty stands unique among roughly 4,100 publicly traded U.S. companies in 2023. The company's board composition shows impressive diversity with 78% women and 44% diverse members.

How acquisitions like rhode changed the game

e.l.f. Beauty made headlines in May 2025 by buying Hailey Bieber's rhode skincare brand for $1 billion. This record-breaking deal altered the map of the beauty industry and transformed e.l.f.'s market standing overnight.

Why rhode was a strategic fit

The brands created perfect chemistry together, both capturing Gen Z and millennial audiences. rhode's success story started in 2022, and within three years, the brand racked up $212 million in net sales by March 2025. The brand climbed to become the top skincare name in earned media value during 2024, with a remarkable 367% growth year-over-year.

e.l.f.'s purchase of rhode opened doors to the prestige beauty market at higher price points. While e.l.f. products start around $6.50, rhode's offerings average in the high $20s. This price difference helped e.l.f. reach new customers without hurting its existing sales.

Deal structure and financials

The deal included $800 million upfront—$600 million in cash and $200 million in newly issued e.l.f. Beauty common stock (about 2.6 million shares). rhode could earn an extra $200 million based on its performance over the next three years. The purchase price was about 3.8x rhode's net sales from the previous twelve months.

Hailey Bieber's ongoing role

Bieber didn't just sell her company—she stepped up as Chief Creative Officer and Head of Innovation. She now leads creative direction, product innovation, and marketing while advising both companies. Her dedication showed from day one when she worked with skincare experts, dermatologists, and cosmetic chemists to develop the line.

Impact on e.l.f.'s brand portfolio

The purchase expanded e.l.f. Beauty's lineup, which included e.l.f. Cosmetics, e.l.f. SKIN, Keys Soulcare, Well People, and Naturium. rhode brought something unique—e.l.f.'s first presence in Sephora stores across the US, Canada, and UK. e.l.f. CEO Tarang Amin explained, "rhode further diversifies our portfolio with a fast-growing brand that makes the best of prestige accessible".

What the future looks like for e.l.f. Beauty

e.l.f. Beauty, the parent company of e.l.f. Cosmetics, shows promising global growth potential for 2025 and beyond. Their international markets now make up 16% of total net sales and have grown 91% year-over-year. The company's strategy moving forward centers on three areas: international expansion, sustainability initiatives, and handling competitive challenges.

Global expansion plans

e.l.f. Beauty has retail presence in 14 countries and continues to expand globally. The company launched its biggest international retail venture in Germany with 1,600 Rossmann locations. Their success extends to the UK, where they've risen to the No. 4 mass makeup brand from No. 8 just a year ago. They've also secured the top spot in Italy's Douglas stores.

e.l.f. continues to grow by entering Mexico through Sephora and expanding in Australia through Coles. They've also partnered with SÆTHER as their exclusive distributor for the Nordic region. This careful step-by-step strategy wants to make the "best of beauty available to every eye, lip, face and skin concern".

Sustainability and clean beauty goals

e.l.f. Beauty has set bold sustainability targets that are 2025 old. They plan to have all paper cartons Forest-Stewardship Council (FSC)-certified by 2025 and cut packaging intensity by 20% by 2030. These changes will remove 400+ tons of packaging each year.

The company leads the beauty industry as the first with Fair Trade Certified™ manufacturing facilities. More than 85% of their products come from these certified factories. They've eliminated over 2,500 ingredients from their formulations and maintain 100% vegan and cruelty-free standards.

Challenges and competition ahead

Despite its growth, e.l.f. Beauty faces tough competition from brands like Credo, Thrive Causemetics, and P/Y/T Beauty. Economic uncertainties and tariffs pose the most important threats. The company decided not to provide 2026 guidance "due to the wide range of potential outcomes related to tariffs". Consumer spending remains sensitive to inflation concerns, especially when you have mass beauty category products.

Conclusion

e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. remains the parent company and owner of e.l.f. Cosmetics in 2025. The company trades publicly on the NYSE under the ticker symbol ELF. This beauty powerhouse started as a modest startup selling affordable makeup online. Now it stands as the No. 1 brand in units across U.S. cosmetics. The company's financial performance speaks volumes, with net global sales rising 28% to $1.3 billion and an impressive 71% gross margin.

Institutional investors own about 93% of the company. Blackrock leads with 11.74%, while The Vanguard Group follows at 9.88%. Company insiders hold a smaller yet vital 3.01% stake. CEO Tarang Amin's leadership since 2014 has grown shareholder equity from $135 million to over $8 billion.

e.l.f. Beauty's strategic acquisitions have altered the map of beauty industry competition. The company's $1 billion purchase of Hailey Bieber's rhode skincare brand marks the fastest billion-dollar sale in beauty history. It also opened doors to Sephora stores worldwide. This move, along with the Naturium acquisition, shows the company's calculated yet bold expansion strategy.

The road ahead presents great opportunities and challenges for e.l.f. Beauty. The company plans to expand across 14 countries and maintains laudable sustainability commitments. Yet it must direct its path through rising competition and economic uncertainties. Tariff concerns and shifting consumer spending habits could affect future growth projections.

e.l.f. Cosmetics' ownership story reveals a beauty empire built on accessibility, diversity, and strategic vision. The company started small but ended up as a multi-billion-dollar enterprise. Its formula of quality cosmetics at affordable prices, combined with thoughtful expansion, has created lasting success in the competitive beauty world.

FAQs

Q1. Who currently owns e.l.f. Cosmetics?

e.l.f. Cosmetics is owned by e.l.f. Beauty, Inc., a publicly traded company listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The majority of shares (about 93%) are held by institutional investors, with Blackrock being the largest shareholder at 11.74%.

Q2. What was the value of Hailey Bieber's Rhode acquisition by e.l.f. Beauty?

e.l.f. Beauty acquired Hailey Bieber's Rhode skincare brand for $1 billion. The deal includes $800 million payable at closing ($600 million in cash and $200 million in e.l.f. Beauty stock) and a potential $200 million earnout based on future performance.

Q3. How has e.l.f. Beauty's leadership impacted the company's growth?

Under CEO Tarang Amin's leadership since 2014, e.l.f. Beauty has experienced significant growth. The company has expanded from a $135 million valuation to over $8 billion in shareholder equity, becoming the No. 1 brand in units across U.S. cosmetics.

Q4. What are e.l.f. Beauty's plans for international expansion?

e.l.f. Beauty is aggressively expanding globally, with a presence in 14 countries. Recent expansions include entering Germany with 1,600 Rossmann locations, becoming the No. 4 mass makeup brand in the UK, and planning entries into Mexico through Sephora and Australia via Coles.

Q5. How is e.l.f. Beauty addressing sustainability in its operations?

e.l.f. Beauty has set ambitious sustainability goals, including having 100% FSC-certified paper cartons by 2025 and reducing packaging intensity by 20% by 2030. The company also maintains 100% vegan and cruelty-free standards and has banned over 2,500 ingredients from their formulations.