CocaCola (NYSE:KO) Shares Down 1.1% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Coca-Cola shares fell 1.1% on Thursday, trading as low as $81.71 before ending around $82.50 on lighter-than-normal volume.
• Wall Street sentiment remains positive: 15 analysts rate KO a Buy and the stock carries a consensus Moderate Buy rating with an average price target of $86.81.
• The company recently beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, posted 11.4% year-over-year revenue growth, and continues to pay a dividend of $0.53 per share quarterly, yielding about 2.6%.

CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) traded down 1.1% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $81.71 and last traded at $82.4950. 15,318,615 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 12% from the average session volume of 17,419,451 shares. The stock had previously closed at $83.40.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on KO. Citigroup increased their price objective on CocaCola from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of CocaCola from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of CocaCola from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $83.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Thursday. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $86.81.

CocaCola Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market cap of $354.93 billion, a PE ratio of 25.94, a P/E/G ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.34. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $80.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.04.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.05. CocaCola had a return on equity of 40.55% and a net margin of 27.80%.The company had revenue of $12.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.73 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.240-3.270 EPS. Research analysts predict that CocaCola Company will post 3.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.67%.

Insider Transactions at CocaCola

In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 31,625 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.93, for a total value of $2,559,411.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $18,074,096.90. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, EVP Jennifer K. Mann sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.46, for a total transaction of $7,946,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 181,384 shares in the company, valued at $14,412,772.64. This trade represents a 35.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 899,905 shares of company stock valued at $71,832,315 in the last quarter. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CocaCola

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Anfield Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in CocaCola by 438.8% during the 4th quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 361 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Louisbourg Investments Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CocaCola in the first quarter worth $25,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of CocaCola during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 1,081.8% during the fourth quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 390 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

CocaCola Company Profile

The Coca‑Cola Company NYSE: KO is a global beverage manufacturer, marketer and distributor best known for its flagship Coca‑Cola soda. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company develops and sells concentrates, syrups and finished beverages across a broad portfolio of brands. Its product range spans sparkling soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready‑to‑drink teas and coffees, and other still beverages, marketed under both global and regional brand names.

Coca‑Cola’s brand portfolio includes widely recognized names such as Coca‑Cola, Diet Coke, Coca‑Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade and Dasani, and in recent years the company has expanded into the coffee and premium beverage categories through acquisitions such as Costa Coffee.

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