CocaCola (NYSE:KO) Trading Up 1.8% on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Shares rose 1.8% after UBS raised its price target from $87 to $90 and reiterated a Buy, while other firms also lifted targets leaving Coca‑Cola with an average analyst rating of Buy and a $85 average price target.
• Insider selling has been notable recently — executives including the CFO and EVP sold shares, and insiders sold about 892,925 shares (~$70.3M) in the past three months, leaving insiders with 0.90% ownership.
• Dividend and results: Coca‑Cola raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53 (annualized $2.12, yield ~2.7%) and posted an EPS beat of $0.58 vs. $0.56, with FY2026 guidance of $3.210–3.240 per share.

CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) shares were up 1.8% on Wednesday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $87.00 to $90.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. CocaCola traded as high as $77.37 and last traded at $77.2430. Approximately 12,319,801 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 32% from the average daily volume of 18,114,730 shares. The stock had previously closed at $75.91.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $88.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $79.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, CocaCola has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $85.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CocaCola news, CFO John Murphy sold 99,437 shares of CocaCola stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.42, for a total value of $7,996,723.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 410,550 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $33,016,431. The trade was a 19.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 23,556 shares of CocaCola stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.50, for a total transaction of $1,872,702.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 223,330 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,754,735. This trade represents a 9.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 892,925 shares of company stock valued at $70,254,796. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Key CocaCola News

Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and higher price targets — UBS raised its price target to $90 with a Buy, and Deutsche Bank lifted its target to $86 and reiterated Buy, giving investors upside to consider and supporting demand for the shares. UBS/Benzinga Coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Major FIFA marketing activation — Coca‑Cola is hosting the FIFA World Cup 2026™ Trophy Tour (stopping in St. Louis), boosting global brand visibility ahead of the tournament and reinforcing its long‑term beverage demand story tied to big sporting events. The FIFA World Cup 2026™ Trophy Tour by Coca‑Cola
• Positive Sentiment: Recent earnings cadence remains supportive — Coca‑Cola beat EPS in its Feb quarter and provided FY guidance, which underpins the dividend/consumer staples narrative that investors reward in uncertain markets. (Company release and quarterly results)
• Neutral Sentiment: Small analyst estimate tweak — Erste Group trimmed its FY2027 EPS forecast marginally (from $3.47 to $3.46), a negligible change that is unlikely by itself to alter the company’s fundamentals.
• Neutral Sentiment: Coca‑Cola FEMSA note — Coverage of KOF highlights a strong regional logistics moat in Latin America; useful context for investors tracking Coca‑Cola’s franchise exposure and bottler dynamics but not a direct KO operating item. Coca‑Cola FEMSA Analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Technical/short‑term pressure — KO slipped below its 50‑day moving average, prompting technical selling and caution among short‑term traders even though it remains above the 200‑day average, which keeps the longer‑term trend intact. Zacks: Slips Below 50‑Day SMA
• Negative Sentiment: Recent short‑term pullbacks — Coverage noted a one‑day decline of ~1.7% in recent sessions, reflecting broader market moves and profit‑taking after recent gains. Yahoo Finance: KO Stock Drops

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of KO. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd increased its holdings in CocaCola by 82.3% during the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 49,700 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,296,000 after buying an additional 22,444 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in CocaCola by 2.9% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,051,957 shares of the company's stock valued at $136,086,000 after buying an additional 57,407 shares during the last quarter. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. increased its holdings in CocaCola by 42.3% during the third quarter. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. now owns 185,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,269,000 after buying an additional 55,000 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its holdings in CocaCola by 1.9% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 10,408,798 shares of the company's stock valued at $690,311,000 after buying an additional 198,886 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC increased its holdings in CocaCola by 47.0% during the third quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 341,220 shares of the company's stock valued at $22,630,000 after buying an additional 109,107 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CocaCola Trading Up 1.8%

The firm has a market capitalization of $332.47 billion, a PE ratio of 25.41, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $77.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $72.40.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.02. CocaCola had a net margin of 27.34% and a return on equity of 41.31%. The business had revenue of $11.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.55 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.210-3.240 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

CocaCola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is an increase from CocaCola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio is currently 69.74%.

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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