Coca Cola Enterprises Inc. (CCE) recently broke above a key level of short-term resistance after reporting better than expected second-quarter results on July 29.

Second-Quarter Results

Sales were mostly flat from last year, up .5% to $5.9 billion. Earnings came in at 67 cents per share, 16 cents ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate.

Coca Cola has been a steady player in the choppy economy of the last year, beating estimates in each of the last four quarters by an average of 11 cents, or 115%.

Dividend Raised

The company also announced a dividend increase of 4 cents, with CEO John Brock saying the decision was a reflection of the company’s stronger balance sheet.

Estimates Jump

Analysts were quick to upgrade their earnings forecasts after the nice beat, with the current-year estimate adding 20 cents and climbing to $1.52 per share. The next-year estimate is also up 20 cents to $1.67, a 10% growth projection.

Valuation

Based on the current-year estimate, this stock has a P/E multiple of 13X, a discount to the overall market with the nice next-year growth projection in tow.

The Chart

Shares of CCE jumped past a short-term level just above $17 in late July after reporting the strong quarter. Take a look below.

Zacks Investment Research
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