Short Interest in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Declines By 11.6%

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) saw a significant decrease in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 29,590,000 shares, a decrease of 11.6% from the January 15th total of 33,490,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 17,330,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.7 days. Currently, 0.7% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO traded down $0.65 during trading on Monday, reaching $68.85. 20,769,370 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,089,333. The firm has a market cap of $296.59 billion, a PE ratio of 28.45, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.61. Coca-Cola has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.36.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating 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, analysts predict that Coca-Cola will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 13.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 92,961,376 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,680,205,000 after purchasing an additional 11,206,995 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 92,957,028 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,664,005,000 after purchasing an additional 2,966,964 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 74,163,187 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,617,400,000 after buying an additional 11,569,920 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,402,151,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,802,296 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,727,131,000 after buying an additional 3,811,756 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. DZ Bank raised 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price objective on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $73.82.

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.