Coca-Cola Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:KO)

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) saw some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Traders acquired 91,479 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 68% compared to the typical daily volume of 54,383 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $69.00 price objective on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.19.

Institutional Trading of Coca-Cola

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, MilWealth Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 3.3 %

Shares of KO stock traded up $2.15 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $66.70. 12,650,198 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,428,464. The stock has a market cap of $287.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.59, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. Coca-Cola has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $62.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.31.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. Equities analysts expect that Coca-Cola will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.