The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Magellan Asset Management Ltd

Magellan Asset Management Ltd decreased its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 46,730 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,722 shares during the period. Magellan Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $2,909,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.9% in the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on KO shares. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 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 report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price objective on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.24.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In related news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at $17,520,662.64. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total transaction of $1,806,547.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 52,466 shares in the company, valued at $3,749,745.02. This represents a 32.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of KO stock opened at $71.46 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $307.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $68.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.42. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $57.93 and a one year high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.85%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is 82.59%.

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.