Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Given “Overweight” Rating at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley reissued their overweight rating on shares of Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) in a research report released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $81.00 price target on the stock.

KO has been the topic of several other research reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler upped their target price 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. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $76.00.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $71.76 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $71.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84. Coca-Cola has a fifty-two week low of $60.62 and a fifty-two week high of $74.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $308.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. The firm had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.72 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Coca-Cola will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.84%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 81.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total transaction of $6,391,355.22. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 205,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,815,287.99. This represents a 30.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.87, for a total transaction of $4,335,629.62. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 187,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,491,148.92. This trade represents a 24.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 415,387 shares of company stock worth $29,923,985 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Coca-Cola

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the first quarter worth about $25,000. 1248 Management LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth $30,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 360.0% during the 1st quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 460 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. 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.