Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Stock Price Up 0.3%

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)’s share price rose 0.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $60.88 and last traded at $60.81. Approximately 3,349,093 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 13,759,296 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.64.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Barclays raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. 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.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.09.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 1.5 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The business has a 50 day moving average of $59.98 and a 200-day moving average of $58.72. The stock has a market cap of $265.35 billion, a PE ratio of 24.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.59.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 EPS 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 business had revenue of $10.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.45 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.15%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 78.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total transaction of $1,102,114.91. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,102,114.91. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $3,138,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,602,980. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $2,808,056,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 11,138.6% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,977,819 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,343,000 after buying an additional 4,933,527 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $193,342,000. Putnam Investments LLC raised its position in Coca-Cola by 32.8% during the fourth quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 12,032,095 shares of the company’s stock worth $709,051,000 after acquiring an additional 2,973,234 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 40,564,179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,390,448,000 after purchasing an additional 2,893,061 shares in the last quarter. 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.