Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Shares Down 0.4% Following Analyst Downgrade

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) traded down 0.4% 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 changed hands 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.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Barclays dropped their target price on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price 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 reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,933,220.38. This trade represents a 22.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Coca-Cola by 57.6% in the 3rd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,409 shares of the company’s stock worth $173,000 after purchasing an additional 880 shares during the period. American Trust lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter. American Trust now owns 17,573 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,263,000 after buying an additional 1,771 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,984,953 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,990,407,000 after buying an additional 1,609,565 shares in the last quarter. Decatur Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter valued at $3,395,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 222.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 192,237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,814,000 after buying an additional 132,701 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $66.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.61. The firm has a market cap of $273.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 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.

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

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s dividend 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.