Piper Sandler Initiates Coverage on Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO)

Investment analysts at Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm set an “overweight” rating and a $74.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 21.89% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.60.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of Coca-Cola stock opened at $60.71 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. Coca-Cola has a twelve month low of $57.93 and a twelve month high of $73.53. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $63.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.57. The firm has a market cap of $261.53 billion, a PE ratio of 25.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.45% and a return on equity of 44.01%. The firm had revenue of $11.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Coca-Cola will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $6,403,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,933,220.38. The trade was a 22.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Coca-Cola

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. FMR LLC increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 13.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 92,961,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,680,205,000 after purchasing an additional 11,206,995 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 92,957,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,664,005,000 after acquiring an additional 2,966,964 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 38,701,876 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,463,373,000 after acquiring an additional 1,084,475 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Coca-Cola by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,615,428 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,271,885,000 after acquiring an additional 4,013,996 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,984,953 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,990,407,000 after purchasing an additional 1,609,565 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is 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.