CocaCola (NYSE:KO) Stock Price Down 1.6% Following Insider Selling

CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO)’s stock price fell 1.6% during mid-day trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $77.75 and last traded at $78.07. 19,367,964 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 1% from the average session volume of 19,475,648 shares. The stock had previously closed at $79.34.

Specifically, CFO John Murphy sold 72,449 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.52, for a total transaction of $5,833,593.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 279,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,538,916.84. This trade represents a 20.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.16, for a total transaction of $1,603,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 57,532 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,611,765.12. This trade represents a 25.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In other CocaCola news, CFO John Murphy sold 99,437 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.42, for a total value of $7,996,723.54. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 410,550 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,016,431. This represents a 19.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KO has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on CocaCola from $88.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on CocaCola from $79.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Barclays lifted their target price on CocaCola from $77.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and fifteen have given a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CocaCola has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.33.

Trending Headlines about CocaCola

Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management is accelerating a digital transformation across marketing, supply‑chain and analytics aimed at driving long‑term efficiency and margin expansion — a clear fundamental tailwind if execution stays on track. Is Coca-Cola’s Digital Transformation a Catalyst for Margin Expansion?
• Positive Sentiment: Coca‑Cola recently raised its quarterly dividend (supporting yield investor demand) and remains a long‑standing dividend stalwart — this helps steady demand from income‑oriented funds. Valuation Check After Another Dividend Raise For Income Investors
• Positive Sentiment: Major brokerages continue to favor KO (consensus “Buy” with several target raises), which supports medium‑term investor confidence and limits downside.
• Neutral Sentiment: KO has been a trending topic on screens and in sector roundups (Zacks/Yahoo); this can bring short‑term attention and flows but is not a direct company catalyst. KO Is a Trending Stock: Facts to Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Large institutional holders remain heavily invested (Vanguard, State Street, etc.), which roughly stabilizes share ownership over time but doesn’t remove near‑term volatility. KO Institutional Ownership
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling on March 2–3: CEO James Quincey (250,688 shares), CFO John Murphy (72,449 shares) and other senior execs trimmed holdings — large, clustered sales have likely driven short‑term selling pressure and negative sentiment. SEC Form 4 (Quincey) SEC Form 4 (Murphy)
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst/coverage pieces raising questions about earnings quality and reporting nuances add to caution among value‑oriented traders and may deepen short‑term weakness. Seeking Alpha: Earnings Quality Still Not Great

CocaCola Trading Down 1.5%

The stock has a market capitalization of $330.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $74.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.05.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.02. CocaCola had a return on equity of 41.31% and a net margin of 27.34%.The business had revenue of $11.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.55 earnings per share. CocaCola’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.210-3.240 EPS. On average, analysts expect that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is a boost from CocaCola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. CocaCola’s payout ratio is currently 67.11%.

Institutional Trading of CocaCola

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in KO. Anfield Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of CocaCola by 438.8% in the 4th quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in CocaCola in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new position in CocaCola in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in CocaCola by 1,081.8% during the fourth quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 390 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 357 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

About CocaCola

The Coca‑Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a global beverage manufacturer, marketer and distributor best known for its flagship Coca‑Cola soda. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company develops and sells concentrates, syrups and finished beverages across a broad portfolio of brands. Its product range spans sparkling soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready‑to‑drink teas and coffees, and other still beverages, marketed under both global and regional brand names.

Coca‑Cola’s brand portfolio includes widely recognized names such as Coca‑Cola, Diet Coke, Coca‑Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade and Dasani, and in recent years the company has expanded into the coffee and premium beverage categories through acquisitions such as Costa Coffee.