The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Receives $68.55 Average Price Target from Brokerages

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $68.55.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on KO shares. Argus increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. StockNews.com lowered Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 14th. UBS Group raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 8,874 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.31, for a total transaction of $561,812.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 33,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,129,621.78. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 8,874 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.31, for a total value of $561,812.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 33,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,129,621.78. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 57,298 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $3,551,903.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 167,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,358,962.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 223,665 shares of company stock worth $13,995,465 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of KO. ZRC Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 213.3% during the 4th quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. Tidemark LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth about $28,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

KO stock opened at $62.19 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $62.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $60.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $267.89 billion, a PE ratio of 24.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.59. Coca-Cola has a 1 year low of $51.55 and a 1 year high of $64.36.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.01 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.74% and a net margin of 23.41%. The business’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.68 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Coca-Cola will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.12%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 77.60%.

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.