Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Trading 0.6% Higher – Still a Buy?

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) rose 0.6% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $71.32 and last traded at $71.19. Approximately 3,018,805 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 78% from the average daily volume of 14,024,977 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.74.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on KO. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price objective on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. TD Cowen upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.5 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $67.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.41. The company has a market cap of $302.80 billion, a PE ratio of 28.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. Research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.90%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Coca-Cola news, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total value of $1,806,547.19. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 52,466 shares in the company, valued at $3,749,745.02. The trade was a 32.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Coca-Cola

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. REAP Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 57.5% during the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the period. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.