Coca-Cola Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:KO)

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Traders bought 72,457 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 43% compared to the average daily volume of 50,522 put options.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. This trade represents a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Coca-Cola

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Charles Schwab Trust Co bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $200,000. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 895,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,727,000 after purchasing an additional 87,920 shares during the period. Royal Fund Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 29.0% in the fourth quarter. Royal Fund Management LLC now owns 32,493 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,027,000 after buying an additional 7,313 shares in the last quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 81,972 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,104,000 after acquiring an additional 1,468 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE:KO opened at $62.27 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. Coca-Cola has a 1-year low of $57.93 and a 1-year high of $73.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $268.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.73, a PEG ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.61. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $62.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.44.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.74 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Coca-Cola will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on KO shares. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $82.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Barclays cut their target price 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. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. TD Cowen upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two research 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, Coca-Cola presently 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.