Barclays Increases Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Price Target to $70.00

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) had its price objective upped by Barclays from $69.00 to $70.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $70.25.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

KO opened at $66.42 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $286.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.43, a P/E/G ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.59. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $63.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $61.44. Coca-Cola has a 52-week low of $51.55 and a 52-week high of $66.89.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.92% and a return on equity of 43.62%. The business had revenue of $12.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Coca-Cola will post 2.84 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were given a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.92%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.60%.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 19,304 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.96, for a total value of $1,253,987.84. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $14,507,516.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 19,304 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.96, for a total value of $1,253,987.84. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $14,507,516.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 8,874 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.31, for a total value of $561,812.94. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 33,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,129,621.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 841,588 shares of company stock worth $568,972,027. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Tidemark LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

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.