CocaCola (NYSE:KO) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo & Company Analyst Says

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company has increased its target price for CocaCola (NYSE:KO) from $75.00 to $79.00, indicating a potential upside of 11.81% from its current price.
• Analysts currently hold a consensus rating of "Buy" for CocaCola, with one analyst giving a Strong Buy rating and fourteen others assigning a Buy rating.
• CocaCola's stock traded down 0.8% to $70.66 recently, with the company having a market cap of $304.08 billion and an average target price of $77.62.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $75.00 to $79.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective indicates a potential upside of 11.81% from the company's current price.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on KO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on CocaCola from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. UBS Group reduced their price objective on CocaCola from $84.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Evercore ISI reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Tuesday. 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, July 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $77.62.

CocaCola Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE KO traded down $0.57 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $70.66. 1,891,004 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 16,759,223. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $67.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $69.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. CocaCola has a 52 week low of $60.62 and a 52 week high of $74.38. The stock has a market cap of $304.08 billion, a PE ratio of 25.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.43.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 27th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter. CocaCola had a return on equity of 44.91% and a net margin of 25.89%.The company had revenue of $11.40 billion for the quarter. Analysts forecast that CocaCola will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at CocaCola

In other news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 37,396 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total transaction of $2,584,063.60. Following the transaction, the insider owned 209,513 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,477,348.30. This represents a 15.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of CocaCola

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CocaCola in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. 1248 Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CocaCola in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 5,142.9% in the second quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 367 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CocaCola in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

About CocaCola

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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