Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Stock Price Up 0.5% After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) shot up 0.5% during mid-day trading on Monday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $73.00 to $78.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Coca-Cola traded as high as $72.24 and last traded at $71.74. 2,051,649 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 13,094,242 shares. The stock had previously closed at $71.41.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Argus raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Cfra reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 27th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,482 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.95, for a total transaction of $1,274,333.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $15,398,603.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,482 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.95, for a total transaction of $1,274,333.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $15,398,603.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 42,397 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction of $2,968,637.94. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $30,987,070.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 974,715 shares of company stock worth $579,704,927 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 2.2% during the second quarter. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,871 shares of the company’s stock worth $437,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 1.6% during the second quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,824 shares of the company’s stock worth $630,000 after buying an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 4.4% during the second quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 3,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $231,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Liberty Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 3.7% during the second quarter. Liberty Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,319 shares of the company’s stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.4% during the second quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 42,407 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,699,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

The business’s fifty day moving average is $68.47 and its 200-day moving average is $64.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market cap of $310.60 billion, a PE ratio of 28.84, a P/E/G ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.60.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $12.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.78 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.92% and a return on equity of 43.62%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.78 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.69%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.60%.

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.