CocaCola (NYSE:KO) Trading 1.8% Higher - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Coca-Cola shares rose 1.8% to about $90.38, with analysts maintaining a generally positive outlook. The stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $95.76.
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.97 EPS and $13.37 billion in revenue, while revenue increased 6.2% year over year. Fiscal 2026 guidance remains between $3.27 and $3.30 EPS.
• Coca-Cola declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, equivalent to a $2.12 annualized payout and a 2.3% yield. Several insiders sold shares recently, though the transactions were tied to tax withholding obligations from vested equity awards.

CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 1.8% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $90.76 and last traded at $90.3840. 15,969,195 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 7% from the average session volume of 17,187,684 shares. The stock had previously closed at $88.82.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $86.00 price objective (up from $82.00) on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $93.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Argus upped their price target on CocaCola from $91.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Barclays increased their price target on CocaCola from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of CocaCola from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $95.76.

CocaCola Trading Up 1.8%

The stock has a market capitalization of $388.88 billion, a PE ratio of 27.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.33. The company's 50 day moving average price is $83.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.04. CocaCola had a net margin of 28.56% and a return on equity of 39.38%. The company had revenue of $13.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.87 EPS. CocaCola's revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.270-3.300 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that CocaCola Company will post 3.29 earnings per share for the current year.

CocaCola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.66%.

Insider Activity at CocaCola

In other CocaCola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 75,727 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.65, for a total value of $6,788,925.55. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 35,393 shares in the company, valued at $3,172,982.45. The trade was a 68.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 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. Also, CFO John Murphy sold 152,483 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.31, for a total transaction of $13,313,290.73. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 279,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,439,553.27. This trade represents a 35.26% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 1,433,535 shares of company stock valued at $121,922,698 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CocaCola

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in CocaCola by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 374,771,512 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,200,276,000 after buying an additional 5,886,352 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of CocaCola by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 167,850,330 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,734,417,000 after acquiring an additional 1,992,327 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of CocaCola by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 89,984,203 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,273,037,000 after acquiring an additional 433,547 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of CocaCola in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,865,807,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of CocaCola by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 45,958,636 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,735,058,000 after acquiring an additional 1,939,673 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company's stock.

About CocaCola

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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