Molson Coors Beverage (NYSE:TAP) Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

Molson Coors Beverage Company (NYSE:TAP)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $54.00 to $52.00. The stock had previously closed at $50.82, but opened at $47.61. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Molson Coors Beverage shares last traded at $48.3020, with a volume of 1,702,446 shares changing hands.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on TAP. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Molson Coors Beverage from $51.00 to $48.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Evercore lowered their price target on Molson Coors Beverage from $53.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Zacks Research raised Molson Coors Beverage from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $49.00 target price on shares of Molson Coors Beverage in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Molson Coors Beverage from $47.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $52.56.

Trending Headlines about Molson Coors Beverage

Here are the key news stories impacting Molson Coors Beverage this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 EPS beat expectations — Molson Coors reported $1.21 EPS vs. the $1.17 consensus, showing better-than-expected profitability for the quarter. Zacks: TAP surpasses Q4 earnings estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend increase — the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.48 (ex-dividend Mar. 6), up ~2.1% from $0.47, implying a ~3.8% yield. This supports income-oriented investors and signals board confidence in cash flow.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support from Evercore — Evercore raised its price target and kept an Outperform rating, a bullish counterpoint to some other cautious calls. Evercore raises price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Management presentation at CAGNY — management presented strategy and detail on the results; useful for modeling but did not materially change guidance. CAGNY transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst write?ups and metric reviews — outlets (Zacks) flagged the EPS beat but noted revenue and other metrics that may require closer scrutiny when modeling growth. Zacks: key metrics analysis
• Negative Sentiment: FY?2026 guidance came in below Street expectations — Molson Coors guided to EPS of $4.607–$4.823 vs. the ~$5.42 consensus and revenue of $11.0–$11.3B (vs. ~$11.2B consensus), a key driver of downward re-pricing. Company press release
• Negative Sentiment: Cost headwinds — management warned higher aluminum tariffs and weaker spending among price?sensitive consumers will materially press profits in 2026, prompting a sharp profit forecast cut. Reuters: aluminum costs bite
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst trimming — Wells Fargo lowered its price target from $54 to $52 and moved to an “equal weight” stance, reflecting the more challenged 2026 outlook. Benzinga: Wells Fargo lowers PT
• Negative Sentiment: Top-line softness — Q4 net sales fell ~2.7% YoY and missed some revenue estimates, underscoring demand softness highlighted by the WSJ coverage. WSJ: profit, sales fall

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Molson Coors Beverage

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Polianta Ltd bought a new position in shares of Molson Coors Beverage in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,543,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Molson Coors Beverage by 20.4% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,036,110 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,828,000 after purchasing an additional 175,587 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank raised its position in Molson Coors Beverage by 5.5% during the second quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 537,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,853,000 after purchasing an additional 27,900 shares during the period. Wilsey Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Molson Coors Beverage by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wilsey Asset Management Inc. now owns 591,259 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,754,000 after purchasing an additional 27,819 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Molson Coors Beverage by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,430,544 shares of the company’s stock worth $200,482,000 after purchasing an additional 152,859 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.46% of the company’s stock.

Molson Coors Beverage Trading Down 4.3%

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $48.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.87. The stock has a market cap of $9.62 billion, a PE ratio of -4.56 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.60.

Molson Coors Beverage (NYSE:TAP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.04. Molson Coors Beverage had a positive return on equity of 8.78% and a negative net margin of 15.89%.The company had revenue of $2.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.71 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.30 earnings per share. Molson Coors Beverage’s revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Molson Coors Beverage has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.607-4.823 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Molson Coors Beverage Company will post 6.35 EPS for the current year.

Molson Coors Beverage Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Molson Coors Beverage’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Molson Coors Beverage’s payout ratio is currently -17.60%.

About Molson Coors Beverage

Molson Coors Beverage Company is a leading multinational brewing and beverage enterprise formed through the 2005 merger of Canada’s Molson and the United States’ Coors. The company develops, markets and distributes an array of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, focusing primarily on beer and ready-to-drink products. Its portfolio spans flagship brands such as Coors Light, Molson Canadian and Miller Lite, alongside craft-style offerings like Blue Moon and global imports including Carling and Staropramen.

In addition to its core beer business, Molson Coors has expanded into adjacent categories to capture evolving consumer tastes.