Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Shares Down 1.2% – Time to Sell?

Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) fell 1.2% on Monday . The company traded as low as $61.75 and last traded at $61.77. 2,620,236 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 81% from the average session volume of 14,052,564 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.55.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on KO. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Cfra restated a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.50.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $270.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.97, a PEG ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.61. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $64.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.61 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.45% and a return on equity of 44.01%. Coca-Cola’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.74 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were given a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.09%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.17%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. This represents a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $35,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the third quarter worth about $36,000. Mount Lucas Management LP bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the second quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, American Capital Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 598.0% in the 2nd quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC now owns 705 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 604 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

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.