The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Holdings Raised by Strategic Financial Services Inc.

Strategic Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 30.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,849 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,605 shares during the quarter. Strategic Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $426,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sandy Spring Bank boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Sandy Spring Bank now owns 57,501 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,580,000 after acquiring an additional 3,938 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,909,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $118,888,000 after purchasing an additional 4,862 shares in the last quarter. L.K. Benson & Company P.C. purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $244,000. First Financial Bankshares Inc increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. First Financial Bankshares Inc now owns 965,442 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,108,000 after buying an additional 96,168 shares during the period. Finally, Generali Investments Management Co LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,809,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of Coca-Cola stock opened at $69.33 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $298.20 billion, a PE ratio of 28.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $57.93 and a 52-week high of $73.53. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $66.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. On average, analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total transaction of $3,882,079.68. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 246,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,520,662.64. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $961,317.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 94,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,769,334. The trade was a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. DZ Bank raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price objective on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Company 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.