Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Price Target Raised to $72.00 at UBS Group

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Free Report) had its price objective raised by UBS Group from $70.00 to $72.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the stock.

KO has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Wednesday. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $68.18.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE KO traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $61.93. The company had a trading volume of 16,729,184 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,085,831. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.02. The company has a market capitalization of $266.99 billion, a PE ratio of 25.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.59. Coca-Cola has a one year low of $51.55 and a one year high of $64.25.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.50% and a net margin of 23.42%. The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.01 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.68 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Coca-Cola will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 78.23%.

Insider Activity

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $13,594,097.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total value of $3,491,990.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,594,097.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total value of $15,063,636.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 323,107 shares of company stock worth $19,657,742. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Tidemark LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. ZRC Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 213.3% during the fourth quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.