Bell Asset Management Ltd Purchases 74,419 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Bell Asset Management Ltd raised its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 106.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 144,024 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 74,419 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola comprises about 1.6% of Bell Asset Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest position. Bell Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $8,967,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.9% during the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $961,317.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at $6,769,334. This represents a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total transaction of $10,327,339.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on KO shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Trading Down 4.5 %

Shares of KO opened at $69.87 on Monday. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.95. The firm has a market cap of $300.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.29, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $68.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly 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%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share 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 paid a $0.51 dividend. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s 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.