Analysts Set The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) PT at $67.22

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $68.27.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total value of $15,063,636.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,968,753.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through 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 shares were sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total transaction of $1,102,114.91. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 323,107 shares of company stock valued at $19,657,742 in the last 90 days. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Coca-Cola

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. ZRC Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 213.3% during the fourth quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Tidemark LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $62.18 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market cap of $268.05 billion, a PE ratio of 24.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $60.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.06. Coca-Cola has a 12-month low of $51.55 and a 12-month high of $64.25.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.01 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.41% and a return on equity of 42.74%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.68 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Coca-Cola will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. 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.