Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Shares Up 0.5% Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) were up 0.5% on Thursday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $66.00 to $73.00. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Coca-Cola traded as high as $69.61 and last traded at $69.08. Approximately 7,274,434 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 55% from the average daily volume of 16,119,020 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.71.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on KO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. DZ Bank upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday. TD Cowen upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $73.82.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $35,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $62.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.36. The company has a market capitalization of $296.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.45, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

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.