UBS Group Boosts Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) Price Target to $78.00

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) had its target price upped by equities research analysts at UBS Group from $72.00 to $78.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. UBS Group’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 14.74% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.31.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

KO stock traded up $0.38 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $67.98. 9,335,755 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,857,782. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The business has a 50-day moving average of $62.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $292.84 billion, a PE ratio of 28.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.61. Coca-Cola has a 52 week low of $57.93 and a 52 week high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its 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 return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Coca-Cola will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the third quarter valued at about $58,000. Creative Planning raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 1,852,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $133,123,000 after acquiring an additional 70,604 shares during the period. Acorn Creek Capital LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $207,000. CCG Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 4.3% during the third quarter. CCG Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,614 shares of the company’s stock valued at $260,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 6.7% in the third quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 15,405 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,107,000 after purchasing an additional 970 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

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.