Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Shares Up 1.3%

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) traded up 1.3% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $65.12 and last traded at $65.09. 3,112,822 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 12,813,373 shares. The stock had previously closed at $64.27.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Argus raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $70.00.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $280.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.10, a PEG ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $63.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $61.24.

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. The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.01 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.41% and a return on equity of 42.74%. Coca-Cola’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.68 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.60%.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other news, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 8,874 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.31, for a total value of $561,812.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,129,621.78. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 8,874 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.31, for a total value of $561,812.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 33,638 shares in the company, valued at $2,129,621.78. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 57,298 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $3,551,903.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 167,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,358,962.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 841,588 shares of company stock valued at $568,972,027 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Coca-Cola

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 42.6% during the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 6,245,331 shares of the company’s stock worth $397,515,000 after purchasing an additional 1,866,348 shares during the period. Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.2% in the second quarter. Signet Investment Advisory Group Inc. now owns 42,162 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,684,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the period. Marietta Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 23.1% in the second quarter. Marietta Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,226 shares of the company’s stock valued at $460,000 after purchasing an additional 1,358 shares during the period. Boomfish Wealth Group LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 8.9% in the second quarter. Boomfish Wealth Group LLC now owns 7,271 shares of the company’s stock valued at $463,000 after purchasing an additional 596 shares during the period. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 6.9% in the second quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management now owns 236,597 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,051,000 after purchasing an additional 15,306 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Company Profile

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.