Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Stock Price Up 1%

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) was up 1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $61.43 and last traded at $61.13. Approximately 2,358,157 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 14,030,669 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.54.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Coca-Cola Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The company’s fifty day moving average is $60.06 and its 200 day moving average is $58.32. The firm has a market cap of $263.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.66, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.59.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.01. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.50% and a net margin of 23.42%. The company had revenue of $10.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.45 EPS. Coca-Cola’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business 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 $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,102,114.91. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $3,138,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares in the company, valued at $8,602,980. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Freedom Wealth Alliance LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Tidemark LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, ZRC Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 213.3% in the 4th quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.