Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Trading 0.1% Higher

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) rose 0.1% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $62.97 and last traded at $62.67. Approximately 1,603,227 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 13,778,813 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.62.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KO shares. Barclays raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Citigroup increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.27.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.4 %

The business has a 50 day moving average price of $60.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $270.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.41% and a return on equity of 42.74%. The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.68 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.09%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.60%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total value of $15,063,636.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $26,968,753.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $26,968,753.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 57,298 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $3,551,903.02. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 167,107 shares in the company, valued at $10,358,962.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 380,405 shares of company stock worth $23,209,645 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. ZRC Wealth Management LLC increased its stake 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 valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Tidemark LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. 70.26% of the stock is 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.