Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Shares Up 0.3% – Time to Buy?

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)’s stock price shot up 0.3% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $62.12 and last traded at $61.94. 2,722,420 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 13,317,218 shares. The stock had previously closed at $61.74.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on KO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Cfra reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.36.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.4 %

The company has a market cap of $267.04 billion, a PE ratio of 25.60, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.61. 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 business’s 50 day moving average is $68.63 and its 200-day moving average is $66.54.

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

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.13%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 80.17%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total value of $6,403,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. The trade was a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $15,968,095. This represents a 7.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 303,748 shares of company stock worth $20,677,431 in the last 90 days. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of KO. New Millennium Group LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Mount Lucas Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter worth $38,000. 70.26% of the stock is 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.