Meridian Wealth Management LLC Buys New Shares in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 41,253 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,964,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 112.3% during the first quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,399 shares of the company’s stock worth $86,000 after acquiring an additional 740 shares in the last quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Coca-Cola by 33.0% in the 1st quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $767,000 after purchasing an additional 3,111 shares in the last quarter. Transcendent Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 258.3% in the 1st quarter. Transcendent Capital Group LLC now owns 2,440 shares of the company’s stock worth $149,000 after buying an additional 1,759 shares during the last quarter. QVR LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola during the first quarter valued at about $710,000. Finally, Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.7% in the first quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 428,062 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,189,000 after buying an additional 3,008 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of KO stock opened at $63.92 on Friday. 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 business has a 50-day moving average of $67.79 and a 200 day moving average of $66.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $275.33 billion, a PE ratio of 26.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $57.47 and a 1-year high of $73.53.

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

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on KO. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Cfra reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 42,397 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction of $2,968,637.94. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $30,987,070.92. The trade was a 8.74 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $1,321,606.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,968,095. This represents a 7.64 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 160,881 shares of company stock worth $10,693,244. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.