The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Receives $72.50 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, thirteen have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $72.50.

KO has been the subject of several research reports. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total value of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. This trade represents a 22.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Coca-Cola

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the second quarter worth about $289,000. Tortoise Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 50.7% in the 2nd quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 2,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $184,000 after buying an additional 972 shares during the period. Magnus Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Magnus Financial Group LLC now owns 15,249 shares of the company’s stock worth $971,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 19.0% during the 2nd quarter. Founders Financial Securities LLC now owns 31,281 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,991,000 after acquiring an additional 5,005 shares during the period. Finally, First National Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.5% during the second quarter. First National Trust Co now owns 43,393 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,762,000 after purchasing an additional 628 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

KO stock opened at $61.75 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $63.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.52. Coca-Cola has a 1-year low of $57.93 and a 1-year high of $73.53. The company has a market capitalization of $266.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.52, a PEG ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 EPS 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 analyst estimates of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.74 EPS. Coca-Cola’s revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Coca-Cola will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.17%.

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.