Short Interest in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Decreases By 16.5%

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 33,950,000 shares, a decrease of 16.5% from the September 15th total of 40,650,000 shares. Approximately 0.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 13,780,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on KO shares. Cfra restated a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 target price for the company. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.00.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $1,321,606.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,968,095. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $1,321,606.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,968,095. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 38,653 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.01, for a total value of $2,667,443.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 356,792 shares of company stock valued at $24,728,364 in the last ninety days. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the second quarter worth about $27,000. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 65.0% in the first quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 523 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE KO traded up $0.15 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $70.49. 4,285,068 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,130,165. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.92. Coca-Cola has a twelve month low of $53.21 and a twelve month high of $73.53. The company has a market cap of $303.67 billion, a PE ratio of 28.20, a P/E/G ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.60. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $70.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $65.59.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $12.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.78 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.92% and a return on equity of 43.62%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.78 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Coca-Cola will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.75%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.60%.

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.