Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Stock Price Up 0.3%

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) rose 0.3% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $61.26 and last traded at $61.21. Approximately 2,213,022 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 13,997,854 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.03.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on KO shares. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.00.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average is $60.06 and its 200-day moving average is $58.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $263.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.65, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.01. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.50% and a net margin of 23.42%. The business had revenue of $10.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.45 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 78.23%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,102,114.91. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total transaction of $1,102,114.91. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total value of $3,491,990.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,594,097.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742 over the last ninety days. 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 KO. State Street Corp increased its position in Coca-Cola by 1.0% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 171,246,926 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,390,407,000 after buying an additional 1,628,772 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 80,448,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,503,484,000 after purchasing an additional 1,950,146 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 63,138,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,501,789,000 after buying an additional 2,464,618 shares in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 103,297.9% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 57,734,303 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,672,479,000 after buying an additional 57,678,466 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $2,808,056,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.