The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Receives $75.81 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Buy" by the nineteen brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $75.81.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on KO. DZ Bank upgraded Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Cfra Research raised Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 55,500 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $3,941,055.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at $17,533,008.09. The trade was a 18.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 229,761 shares of company stock valued at $16,474,587 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in KO. Tallon Kerry Patrick purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $241,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 39,072 shares of the company's stock worth $2,433,000 after purchasing an additional 4,591 shares in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $24,472,000. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,795 shares of the company's stock valued at $548,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC now owns 11,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $717,000 after purchasing an additional 927 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

NYSE KO traded up $0.64 on Friday, reaching $72.13. The company had a trading volume of 28,013,099 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,748,391. Coca-Cola has a 12 month low of $60.62 and a 12 month high of $74.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $71.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $310.47 billion, a PE ratio of 29.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. Coca-Cola's revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Coca-Cola will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.83%. Coca-Cola's payout ratio is 81.60%.

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.