Estee Lauder is regaining lost ground in China.

Shares of Estee Lauder are up about 5% since Barron's highlighted them last month; at the time, we noted that the company's turnaround -- its Beauty Reimagined plan -- was finally underway and about to improve returns, with or without former growth powerhouse China.

Since then, the company introduced new long-term financial targets carrying it through fiscal 2030, which call for double-digit adjusted earnings per share growth, and also hosted a four-day China Capital Markets Experience in Shanghai and Hainan, highlighting its strategy to bolster its sales in a nation that has been a disappointment for investors since the pandemic.

Citi analyst Filippo Falorni attended, and came away upbeat about Estee Lauder's progress, bolstering his bullish view of the stock.

The event left him "with a clearer perspective on Estee Lauder's strategic capabilities across China and travel retail, as well as increased confidence that the initiatives underway via the Beauty Reimagined strategy can drive sustainable, profitable mid-single digit topline growth alongside ongoing operating margin expansion."

It's not just China. The company's new targets are underpinned by ongoing internal cost-cutting and its expectations for the prestige beauty category to grow between 4% and 5% globally, with Estee Lauder pacing or surpassing that level of growth thanks to innovation and nimble product sourcing. Its success is already playing out, Falorni notes, as evidenced by the impressive organic sales and margin growth the company has delivered in recent quarters.

However, China may not be the drag that it has been in recent years.

Estee Lauder is expanding globally, but it's been particularly successful in Asia, Falorni writes, as it grew its online sales footprint via companies like vip.com in China, and partnered with Shopify to modernize direct-to-consumer infrastructure. It reported organic sales growth in every region in its fiscal first quarter, with Asia-Pacific in the lead and sequential acceleration in mainland China. "Share gains were attributed to better understanding of Chinese consumers, stronger brand execution, and greater speed," he notes.

All of that leaves him confident about Estee Lauder's continued success. Although it has rallied more than 50% from its lows in April, he sees "further upside to the stock as stronger execution translates to improving financial performance," and his price target of $132 implies some 18% upside from current levels.

He wasn't the only one who left Estee Lauder's China event feeling confident: Deutsche Bank analyst Stephen Powers likewise reiterated a Buy rating and $128 price target on the shares after he attended, writing that management showcased how its transformation is making a real-world difference on the ground.

"The company is building a more consumer-centric growth model, supported by faster and more locally relevant innovation; broader contributions across brands, categories, and geographies; and a more sophisticated operating infrastructure," he writes. "In our view, these changes increasingly position Estee Lauder to deliver more consistent growth, stronger operating leverage, and better cash generation over time."

Even without China, however, Estee Lauder looks poised for more gains, as it makes strides in Europe and North America, as well as among Gen Z consumers. There's also the halo effect from increasing GLP-1 use, as patients using weight-loss medications tend to spend more on cosmetics and skin care.

Makeup can cover all kinds of blemishes, but numbers don't lie, and Estee Lauder's figures are looking better and better.