Empowered Funds LLC Sells 35,297 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Empowered Funds LLC trimmed its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 14.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 209,966 shares of the company’s stock after selling 35,297 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $15,088,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. New Millennium Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the second quarter valued at $27,000. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. This trade represents a 22.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 40,334 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.54, for a total value of $2,804,826.36. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,067 shares in the company, valued at $5,150,619.18. The trade was a 35.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 303,748 shares of company stock valued at $20,677,431. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. TD Cowen increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.36.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $62.17 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $68.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $267.82 billion, a PE ratio of 25.85, a P/E/G ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $56.70 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.45% and a return on equity of 44.01%. The company had revenue of $11.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.74 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.12%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Coca-Cola Profile

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.