Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Trading Down 0.4% on Analyst Downgrade

Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) fell 0.4% during trading on Tuesday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $78.00 to $75.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Coca-Cola traded as low as $63.03 and last traded at $63.41. 5,122,844 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 13,524,892 shares. The stock had previously closed at $63.65.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on KO. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Cfra reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.14.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of KO. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the third quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Mount Lucas Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Trading Down 0.2 %

The business’s 50-day moving average is $67.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $273.67 billion, a PE ratio of 26.20, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. The company’s revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.74 EPS. On average, analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 80.17%.

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.