Head to Head Comparison: Luckin Coffee (OTCMKTS:LKNCY) & Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO)

Luckin Coffee (OTCMKTS:LKNCY) and Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, institutional ownership and earnings.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Luckin Coffee and Coca-Cola”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Luckin Coffee	$7.03 billion	1.38	$513.88 million	$2.00	16.95
Coca-Cola	$47.94 billion	8.59	$13.11 billion	$3.40	28.14

Coca-Cola has higher revenue and earnings than Luckin Coffee. Luckin Coffee is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Coca-Cola, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Luckin Coffee and Coca-Cola’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Luckin Coffee	6.78%	24.91%	12.44%
Coca-Cola	28.65%	38.79%	13.50%

Risk and Volatility

Luckin Coffee has a beta of -0.32, meaning that its share price is 132% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Coca-Cola has a beta of 0.28, meaning that its share price is 72% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

0.5% of Luckin Coffee shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 70.3% of Coca-Cola shares are held by institutional investors. 2.7% of Luckin Coffee shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.9% of Coca-Cola shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Luckin Coffee and Coca-Cola, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Luckin Coffee	0	1	1	2	3.25
Coca-Cola	0	3	20	1	2.92

Luckin Coffee currently has a consensus price target of $46.87, indicating a potential upside of 38.21%. Coca-Cola has a consensus price target of $97.26, indicating a potential upside of 1.65%. Given Luckin Coffee’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Luckin Coffee is more favorable than Coca-Cola.

Summary

Coca-Cola beats Luckin Coffee on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Luckin Coffee

Luckin Coffee Inc. offers retail services of freshly brewed drinks, and pre-made food and beverage items in the People's Republic of China. It offers hot and iced freshly brewed coffee, such as Americano, Latte, Cappuccino, Macchiato, Flat White, and Mocha, as well as specialty coffee based on market and seasonal trends; coconut milk latte products; tea drinks; pre-made beverages; and pre-made food items, such as pastries, sandwiches, and snacks. In addition, the company offers Luckin Pop premium instant coffee and inspirational cups through mobile apps and e-commerce platforms. It operates pick-up stores, relax stores, and delivery kitchens under the Luckin brand, as well as Luckin mobile app, Weixin mini-program, and other third-party platforms for third-party payment channels. Further, the company offers technical and consultation services; and manufactures materials for products. Luckin Coffee Inc. was incorporated in 2017 and is headquartered in Xiamen, the People's Republic of China.

About Coca-Cola

The Coca-Cola Company, a beverage company, manufactures, markets, and sells various nonalcoholic beverages worldwide. The company provides sparkling soft drinks, sparkling flavors; water, sports, coffee, and tea; juice, value-added dairy, and plant-based beverages; and other beverages. It also offers beverage concentrates and syrups, as well as fountain syrups to fountain retailers, such as restaurants and convenience stores. The company sells its products under the Coca-Cola, Diet Coke/Coca-Cola Light, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, caffeine free Diet Coke, Cherry Coke, Fanta Orange, Fanta Zero Orange, Fanta Zero Sugar, Fanta Apple, Sprite, Sprite Zero Sugar, Simply Orange, Simply Apple, Simply Grapefruit, Fresca, Schweppes, Thums Up, Aquarius, Ayataka, BODYARMOR, Ciel, Costa, Dasani, dogadan, FUZE TEA, Georgia, glacéau smartwater, glacéau vitaminwater, Gold Peak, Ice Dew, I LOHAS, Powerade, Topo Chico, AdeS, Del Valle, fairlife, innocent, Minute Maid, and Minute Maid Pulpy brands. It operates through a network of independent bottling partners, distributors, wholesalers, and retailers, as well as through bottling and distribution operators. The company was founded in 1886 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.