Coca-Cola Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:KO)

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) saw unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors purchased 72,457 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 43% compared to the average daily volume of 50,522 put options.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of KO stock traded up $0.50 on Thursday, hitting $62.27. 12,558,834 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,935,552. The stock has a market capitalization of $268.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.61. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $62.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.44. Coca-Cola has a one year low of $57.93 and a one year high of $73.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. The firm had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.61 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.74 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Coca-Cola will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total value of $6,403,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. The trade was a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Coca-Cola

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of KO. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the second quarter worth $27,000. Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $43,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on KO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $74.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.60.

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.