Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Trading Down 0.9% - Time to Sell?

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) shares traded down 0.9% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $71.56 and last traded at $71.68. 6,869,957 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average session volume of 16,998,541 shares. The stock had previously closed at $72.32.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on KO shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.1 %

The business's 50 day simple moving average is $64.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.53. The company has a market capitalization of $302.08 billion, a PE ratio of 28.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. As a group, analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total transaction of $10,327,339.35. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at $24,324,191.46. The trade was a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 232,646 shares of company stock worth $16,515,469. 0.97% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Coca-Cola

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Copley Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Copley Financial Group Inc. now owns 9,665 shares of the company's stock worth $602,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 63.6% in the fourth quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 198,579 shares of the company's stock worth $12,364,000 after buying an additional 77,191 shares during the last quarter. BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $511,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $202,017,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.