CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is positive: Eighteen brokerages give Coca-Cola an average “Moderate Buy” rating, with 14 buys, three holds and one strong buy. The average 12-month price target is approximately $95.76.
• Coca-Cola exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.97 in EPS and $13.37 billion in revenue, while revenue increased 6.2% year over year. The company reaffirmed fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $3.27–$3.30.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, equivalent to $2.12 annually and a 2.4% yield. Insiders sold shares during the quarter, while institutional investors own 70.26% of the stock.

Shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eighteen research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $95.7647.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on KO shares. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of CocaCola from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $86.00 price target (up from $82.00) on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded CocaCola from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on CocaCola from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $88.00 price objective on CocaCola in a research note on Friday, June 26th.

Insider Buying and Selling at CocaCola

In other CocaCola news, 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 value of $13,313,290.73. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 279,917 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,439,553.27. This trade represents a 35.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 50,000 shares of CocaCola stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.39, for a total transaction of $4,519,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $20,186,798.70. This represents a 18.29% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders sold 926,620 shares of company stock worth $83,075,714. Insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CocaCola

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA grew its position in shares of CocaCola by 54.5% during the second quarter. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA now owns 21,544 shares of the company's stock worth $1,751,000 after buying an additional 7,597 shares in the last quarter. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of CocaCola by 22.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd. now owns 4,756 shares of the company's stock valued at $388,000 after acquiring an additional 883 shares in the last quarter. Miramontes Capital LLC lifted its stake in CocaCola by 1.8% during the second quarter. Miramontes Capital LLC now owns 13,519 shares of the company's stock worth $1,099,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Core Capital Management & Research inc. bought a new position in CocaCola during the second quarter worth $1,203,000. Finally, Capstone Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in CocaCola by 7.5% in the second quarter. Capstone Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 18,361 shares of the company's stock worth $1,492,000 after purchasing an additional 1,275 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CocaCola Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $88.22 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $87.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $379.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.49, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.34. CocaCola has a 1 year low of $65.35 and a 1 year high of $92.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.30.

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

CocaCola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.66%.

CocaCola Company Profile

The Coca-Cola Company NYSE: KO is a global beverage company best known for its Coca-Cola soft drink, which was first introduced in 1886. The company was incorporated in 1892 and has grown into one of the world's largest beverage businesses.

Its portfolio includes sparkling soft drinks such as Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite and Fanta, along with water, sports drinks, coffee, tea, juice and dairy-based beverages. Other brands associated with the company include Dasani, smartwater, Powerade, Minute Maid, Simply, Costa Coffee, fairlife and Topo Chico.

The Coca-Cola Company primarily develops, owns and markets beverage brands, while relying on a global network of independent bottling partners and distributors to manufacture, package and deliver many of its products.

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