Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Stock Price Down 0.1% - Here's What Happened

Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) fell 0.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $71.69 and last traded at $72.25. 3,783,471 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 15,363,995 shares. The stock had previously closed at $72.35.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KO has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Cfra Research raised Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. DZ Bank raised Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. TD Cowen raised shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.59.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.3 %

The company has a 50-day moving average of $70.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.58. 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 company has a market capitalization of $307.64 billion, a PE ratio of 28.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.23 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. The business's quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.72 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.60%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $961,317.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 94,676 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,769,334. The trade was a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071. Insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the first quarter worth $25,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the first quarter valued at $30,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 360.0% during the 1st quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 460 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. Finally, Moser Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 449.5% during the 1st quarter. Moser Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 500 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.