20-Year Pro Trader Reveals His "MoneyLine"
Ditch your indicators and use the "MoneyLine". A simple line tells you when to buy and sell without the guesswork. It’s a line on a chart that’s helped Nic Chahine win 83% of his options buys. Here's how he does it.
Coca Cola Co's (NYSE:KO) mini cans are delivering maxi results.
Sell-side analysts praised the American soft drink icon for yet another strong quarter of organic growth — the eighth straight with growth of 5% or more — with smaller packaged items such as the mini cans showing particularly good results.
The Analysts
Bank of America analyst Bryan Spillane reiterated a Buy rating and $60 target price.
Wells Fargo’s Bonnie Herzog reiterated an Outperform rating and $60 target price.
BMO’s Amit Sharma kept a Market Perform rating on the stock but increased the target price from $52 to $55.
The Theses
Spillane said the strong organic sales were a reminder that Coke is sustaining momentum based on innovation and marketing investments, citing in particular the smaller packaging move. Mini-can sales are growing at more than 15% year to date, and the company is also seeing solid interest in its Coca-Cola Energy drink. Coke Zero Sugar volumes were also up by about 14% year to date.
That attempt to broaden beyond its familiar, though traditional cola product, is a key as the Atlanta based icon re-makes itself.
“We continue to believe KO should get a premium given its on-going transformation to a total beverage company, which should yield consistent organic sales growth and attractive margins and returns over time,” Spillane wrote in a note.
Forex Headwind
Analysts noted the strong sales growth in the just reported third quarter was offset some by a foreign exchange headwind that kept EPS in line with expectations at 56 cents.
Herzog said most analysts were watching the company’s long-term outlook, and she came away more confident Coke can continue to deliver top-line growth sustainability and new products.
“We think 4-6% organic sales growth is very doable given KO’s strong revenue growth management initiatives as well as momentum across existing products,” Herzog wrote. “All-in, we’re very upbeat.”
Sharma also acknowledged the top-line momentum, and agreed on a 4-6% long-term organic growth outlook, but the analyst remains a little more bearish given the headwind from the ongoing strength of the U.S. dollar.
“While top-line momentum and apparent insulation to potentially softening global growth outlook is attractive, we find it hard to argue for further multiple expansion from already-peak levels … given expectation for another year of below-algorithm EPS growth,” Sharma wrote in a note.
Price Action
Coca-Cola shares were down 1.7% Monday to $53.84.
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20-Year Pro Trader Reveals His "MoneyLine"
Ditch your indicators and use the "MoneyLine". A simple line tells you when to buy and sell without the guesswork. It’s a line on a chart that’s helped Nic Chahine win 83% of his options buys. Here's how he does it.
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