** Shares of CoverGirl parent Coty COTY.N fall nearly 2% to $2.51 premarket
** Co on Tuesday flagged a hit to sales from the conflict in the Middle East, even as it leaned on cost-cutting to reinstate its annual profit target
** J.P. Morgan, maintaining a 'neutral' stance, says Coty’s repeated restructuring efforts wear down investors and are skeptical of another turnaround plan, especially as higher-quality beauty peers such as Estée Lauder EL.N and e.l.f. Beauty ELF.N has also fallen out of favor
** Coty reported revenue of $1.28 bln for the Q3 ended March 31, edging past estimates of $1.27 bln, benefiting from its premium brands such as Marc Jacobs, Chloé, and Kylie Cosmetics
** Eighteen analysts rate the stock "hold" on average; median price target is $2.5 - data compiled by LSEG
** Up to last day's close, stock had fallen ~17% YTD
(Reporting by Akriti Shah in Bengaluru)
((akriti.shah@thomsonreuters.com ; X, formerly Twitter: @AkritiShahh))