Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Trading 0.3% Higher

Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) shot up 0.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $60.88 and last traded at $60.81. 3,349,093 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 13,759,296 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.64.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on KO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 19th. Citigroup upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $67.09.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 1.5 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $60.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $265.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.59.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.01. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.50% and a net margin of 23.42%. The company had revenue of $10.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.45 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This is an increase from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 78.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola 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 transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $13,594,097.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Coca-Cola 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 transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $13,594,097.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,102,114.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.4% in the first quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 69,220 shares of the company's stock worth $4,235,000 after buying an additional 949 shares during the period. Oxler Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 222.1% in the first quarter. Oxler Private Wealth LLC now owns 18,249 shares of the company's stock worth $1,116,000 after purchasing an additional 12,583 shares during the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.4% in the first quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,960 shares of the company's stock worth $548,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.4% in the first quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 12,009 shares of the company's stock worth $729,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HMS Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the first quarter worth about $1,085,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

About Coca-Cola

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.