Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Shares Up 0% – Still a Buy?

Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) were up 0% on Friday . The company traded as high as $62.65 and last traded at $62.46. Approximately 5,828,271 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 58% from the average daily volume of 13,949,146 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.45.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on KO shares. Barclays reduced their price target on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Cfra reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.50.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $270.31 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.06. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $64.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.60.

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

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.09%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 80.17%.

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 stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $6,403,000.00. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KO. Hiley Hunt Wealth Management bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter valued at $219,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 2,027,396 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,689,000 after acquiring an additional 174,948 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS increased its position in Coca-Cola by 14.6% in the 3rd quarter. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS now owns 9,627 shares of the company’s stock valued at $692,000 after acquiring an additional 1,227 shares in the last quarter. 1ST Source Bank raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.7% in the third quarter. 1ST Source Bank now owns 19,835 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,425,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DGS Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 13.1% during the third quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 4,856 shares of the company’s stock worth $349,000 after purchasing an additional 561 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.