Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Stock Price Up 0.6% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) were up 0.6% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $65.99 and last traded at $65.97. Approximately 2,643,651 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 13,206,299 shares. The stock had previously closed at $65.56.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on KO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Hsbc Global Res raised Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $71.80.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 1.3 %

The firm has a market cap of $286.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.60. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $70.54 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 43.62% and a net margin of 22.92%. The company had revenue of $11.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.74 EPS. Coca-Cola’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.92%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.60%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 58,122 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.51, for a total transaction of $3,981,938.22. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,067 shares in the company, valued at $5,074,330.17. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 58,122 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.51, for a total value of $3,981,938.22. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,074,330.17. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $1,321,606.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $15,968,095. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 319,005 shares of company stock worth $22,198,147 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Coca-Cola

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the second quarter worth about $27,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. 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.