Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Shares Down 0.2% Following Analyst Downgrade

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report)'s share price traded down 0.2% during mid-day trading on Monday 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 $63.35 and last traded at $63.92. 2,846,864 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 13,503,059 shares. The stock had previously closed at $64.08.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Cfra restated a "hold" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Hsbc Global Res raised Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Barclays lowered 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. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $72.14.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.97% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. HBW Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the second quarter valued at approximately $249,000. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 101.0% during the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 93,558 shares of the company's stock worth $5,724,000 after buying an additional 47,023 shares in the last quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter worth $48,000. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 6.1% in the second quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 43,372 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,761,000 after buying an additional 2,508 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. grew its position in Coca-Cola by 7.4% in the second quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. now owns 7,768 shares of the company's stock valued at $494,000 after acquiring an additional 535 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The stock has a market cap of $274.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.61.

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

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. 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.