Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Trading 0.7% Higher - Still a Buy?

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) shares were up 0.7% on Monday . The company traded as high as $63.86 and last traded at $63.59. Approximately 4,072,470 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 13,804,689 shares. The stock had previously closed at $63.12.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Cfra reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Barclays decreased 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.50.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

The stock's fifty day moving average is $65.28 and its 200-day moving average is $66.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $269.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.86, a PEG ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. The company had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.74 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total value of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. This trade represents a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 2,027,396 shares of the company's stock valued at $145,689,000 after purchasing an additional 174,948 shares during the period. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 14.6% in the 3rd quarter. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS now owns 9,627 shares of the company's stock valued at $692,000 after purchasing an additional 1,227 shares in the last quarter. 1ST Source Bank grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. 1ST Source Bank now owns 19,835 shares of the company's stock worth $1,425,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 13.1% in the third quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 4,856 shares of the company's stock valued at $349,000 after buying an additional 561 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Copley Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $669,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by 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.