Resonant Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO – Get Rating) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 4,156 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $264,000.
Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. bought a new position in Coca-Cola during the 1st quarter worth about $77,000. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 16.7% during the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 12,227 shares of the company’s stock worth $758,000 after acquiring an additional 1,754 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 41.4% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 149,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,255,000 after acquiring an additional 43,680 shares in the last quarter. Ergoteles LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 385.3% during the 1st quarter. Ergoteles LLC now owns 19,032 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,180,000 after acquiring an additional 15,110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 11.9% during the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 2,840,557 shares of the company’s stock worth $176,115,000 after acquiring an additional 301,804 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.74% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of analysts have recently weighed in on KO shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $68.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 15th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 15th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 13th. StockNews.com cut shares of Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $63.00 to $60.00 in a report on Monday, March 20th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.55.
Coca-Cola Stock Performance
Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 14th. The company reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.19% and a return on equity of 42.35%. The company had revenue of $10.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.92 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.45 EPS. Coca-Cola’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.6 EPS for the current year.
Coca-Cola Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.97%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 16th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 83.64%.
Insider Activity
In other news, insider Brian John Smith sold 126,972 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.07, for a total transaction of $7,881,152.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 116,168 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,210,547.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 34,875 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.32, for a total value of $2,103,660.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 351,737 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,216,775.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Brian John Smith sold 126,972 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.07, for a total transaction of $7,881,152.04. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 116,168 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,210,547.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 282,268 shares of company stock valued at $17,137,823 in the last three months. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Coca-Cola Profile
The Coca-Cola Co engages in the manufacturing and marketing of non-alcoholic beverages. It operates through the following segments: Europe, Middle East and Africa, Latin America, North America, Asia Pacific, Global Ventures, and Bottling Investments. The company was founded by Asa Griggs Candler on May 8, 1886 and is headquartered in Atlanta, GA.
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