Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Trading Up 0%

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)’s stock price rose 0% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $58.38 and last traded at $58.16. Approximately 2,627,641 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 13,695,403 shares. The stock had previously closed at $58.14.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.18.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.8 %

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $252.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.59.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.01. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 42.50%. The company had revenue of $10.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.45 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.485 dividend. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.23%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total value of $3,491,990.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,594,097.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $13,594,097.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Freedom Wealth Alliance LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. ZRC Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 213.3% in the 4th quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Coca-Cola

The Coca-Cola Company, a beverage company, manufactures, markets, and sells various nonalcoholic beverages worldwide. The company provides sparkling soft drinks, sparkling flavors; water, sports, coffee, and tea; juice, value-added dairy, and plant-based beverages; and other beverages. It also offers beverage concentrates and syrups, as well as fountain syrups to fountain retailers, such as restaurants and convenience stores.