CocaCola (NYSE:KO) Shares Down 1.3% - Time to Sell?

CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report)'s share price traded down 1.3% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $68.81 and last traded at $68.73. 5,527,407 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 16,429,294 shares. The stock had previously closed at $69.66.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group cut their price objective on CocaCola from $86.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $81.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Cfra Research upgraded CocaCola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $76.00 price objective on CocaCola and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, BNP Paribas reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $83.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CocaCola has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $77.07.

CocaCola Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The company has a market cap of $299.02 billion, a PE ratio of 24.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $70.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $69.23.

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 analysts' consensus estimates 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 previous year, the business earned $0.84 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

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 given a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio is currently 72.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CocaCola

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the business's 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 275,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. The trade was a 49.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.87, for a total value of $4,335,629.62. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 187,716 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,491,148.92. This represents a 24.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 415,387 shares of company stock worth $29,923,985 over the last quarter. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CocaCola

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of KO. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the first quarter worth $25,000. 1248 Management LLC purchased a new position in CocaCola in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in CocaCola in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. raised its position in CocaCola by 360.0% in the first quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 460 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC raised its position in CocaCola by 148.4% in the first quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 477 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company's stock.

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.