Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Stock Price Up 0.7% – What’s Next?

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)’s stock price shot up 0.7% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $65.10 and last traded at $64.98. 2,827,590 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 13,514,348 shares. The stock had previously closed at $64.55.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on KO. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Cfra restated a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.36.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

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 stock’s 50-day moving average is $67.49 and its 200 day moving average is $66.59. The stock has a market cap of $277.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.85, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.61.

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

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. This trade represents a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.97% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of KO. New Millennium Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Mount Lucas Management LP acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the second quarter worth approximately $38,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.