UPDATE: Bank of America Raises PT on The Coca-Cola Company on Good 1Q13 EPS

In a report published Wednesday, Bank of America analyst Bryan D. Spillane reiterated a Buy rating on The Coca-Cola Company KO, and raised the price target from $44.00 to $46.00. In the report, Spillane noted, “KO 1Q13 EPS of $0.46 was ahead our $0.43 estimate. This was a good result against a tough comparison as the company delivered better than expected unit case growth of 4.0% and operating leverage which was boosted by an economic gain on a hedge (c.$75m) and modest benefit from the reversal of a compensation accrual (about $0.005/sh). Importantly, KO is seeing sequential improvement in pockets of Europe and China while Eurasia & Africa is sustaining its momentum, and North America should improve as the year unfolds.” The Coca-Cola Company closed on Tuesday at $42.37.