The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Insider Bruno Pietracci Sells 19,058 Shares of Stock

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $71.54 on Wednesday. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $57.93 and a twelve month high of $73.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The company has a market capitalization of $308.16 billion, a PE ratio of 28.96, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.03 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.44.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 78.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on KO shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 target price on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $73.82.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $18,383,000. Balentine LLC increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 92.4% during the third quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 28,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,048,000 after acquiring an additional 13,685 shares in the last quarter. Rice Partnership LLC increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,397,000 after acquiring an additional 6,793 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 104.9% during the third quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 116,214 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,351,000 after acquiring an additional 59,503 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 87.7% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 18,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,132,000 after acquiring an additional 8,499 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.