Morgan Stanley Reiterates Overweight Rating for Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO)

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "overweight" rating reiterated by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $81.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 13.20% from the stock's current price.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. DZ Bank raised Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $76.00.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KO traded up $0.20 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $71.55. 4,707,980 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,776,622. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The business's fifty day moving average price is $71.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.63. The company has a market cap of $307.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.97, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. Coca-Cola has a 12-month low of $60.62 and a 12-month high of $74.38.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. The business had revenue of $11.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.72 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Coca-Cola will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 187,716 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,491,148.92. The trade was a 24.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $19,197,000.18. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 275,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. This trade represents a 49.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 440,664 shares of company stock worth $31,730,532. 0.97% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bontempo Ohly Capital Mgmt LLC boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Bontempo Ohly Capital Mgmt LLC now owns 67,132 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,808,000 after purchasing an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank boosted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 147.0% during the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 12,536 shares of the company's stock valued at $898,000 after buying an additional 7,461 shares during the last quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 23.2% in the 1st quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,553 shares of the company's stock worth $112,000 after buying an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Wolfstich Capital LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the 1st quarter worth about $211,000. Finally, Modern Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 13.7% during the 1st quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 39,120 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,802,000 after acquiring an additional 4,717 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola 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.

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