JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Price Target to $68.00

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) had its price objective lifted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $65.00 to $68.00 in a research report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on KO. Citigroup increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $68.27.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $62.17 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $60.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $59.12. Coca-Cola has a 12 month low of $51.55 and a 12 month high of $64.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market cap of $268.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.87, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.57.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.41% and a return on equity of 42.74%. The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.68 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Coca-Cola will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.12%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 77.60%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,968,753.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total value of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $26,968,753.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,594,097.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 323,107 shares of company stock valued at $19,657,742 in the last ninety days. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 9.1% during the first quarter. Buck Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 140,055 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,569,000 after buying an additional 11,659 shares during the last quarter. Team Hewins LLC lifted its position in Coca-Cola by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Team Hewins LLC now owns 16,741 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,032,000 after acquiring an additional 317 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 29,901 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,829,000 after purchasing an additional 660 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Southern Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the first quarter worth approximately $305,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

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.