Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Stock Price Down 1.1% Following Insider Selling

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) shares were down 1.1% during trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $70.64 and last traded at $70.68. Approximately 3,512,503 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 16,735,299 shares. The stock had previously closed at $71.49.

Specifically, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. DZ Bank raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.82.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 1.0 %

The company has a market capitalization of $304.53 billion, a PE ratio of 28.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company has a 50-day moving average of $64.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.47.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.88%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 82.59%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.5% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 399,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,716,000 after acquiring an additional 2,069 shares in the last quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 12.5% in the third quarter. Traynor Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $374,000 after acquiring an additional 577 shares in the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.2% in the third quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 39,326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,826,000 after acquiring an additional 839 shares in the last quarter. Jacobsen Capital Management lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 5.6% in the third quarter. Jacobsen Capital Management now owns 5,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $409,000 after acquiring an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.8% in the third quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 14,535 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,045,000 after acquiring an additional 661 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.