CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) Given Consensus Rating of "Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• CocaCola Company (NYSE:KO) has received an average consensus rating of "Buy" from seventeen research firms, with an average twelve-month target price of $77.21.
• CEO James Quincey recently sold 266,403 shares of CocaCola for approximately $19.2 million, reducing his ownership by over 49%.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.51 per share, with a yield of 2.9%, payable on October 1st.

Shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Buy" from the seventeen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, fourteen have given a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $77.2143.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $76.00 target price on CocaCola and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. BNP Paribas reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $83.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Monday, July 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on CocaCola from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $81.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on CocaCola from $86.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd.

Insider Buying and Selling at CocaCola

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $19,197,000.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 275,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. This represents a 49.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 37,396 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total value of $2,584,063.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 209,513 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,477,348.30. The trade was a 15.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.97% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of CocaCola

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KO. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in CocaCola in the first quarter valued at $25,000. 1248 Management LLC acquired a new stake in CocaCola during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its holdings in CocaCola by 5,142.9% during the 2nd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 367 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares during the period. Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in CocaCola during the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in CocaCola by 360.0% during the 1st quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 460 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CocaCola Price Performance

CocaCola stock opened at $69.57 on Friday. CocaCola has a 12 month low of $60.62 and a 12 month high of $74.38. The stock's 50 day moving average is $70.05 and its 200-day moving average is $70.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The company has a market capitalization of $299.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.67, a PEG ratio of 3.67 and a beta of 0.44.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.04. CocaCola had a return on equity of 44.91% and a net margin of 25.89%. The company had revenue of $12.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.55 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.84 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that CocaCola will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

CocaCola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio is presently 72.34%.

CocaCola 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.

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