Bfsg LLC Trims Stock Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Bfsg LLC cut its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 8.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 4,572 shares of the company’s stock after selling 401 shares during the period. Bfsg LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $269,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. ZRC Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 213.3% in the fourth quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Avion Wealth raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 64.8% during the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 819 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 36.1% during the 3rd quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 928 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of KO stock traded up $0.91 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $61.55. 19,530,926 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 13,970,263. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $51.55 and a 1-year high of $64.69. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $59.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $265.35 billion, a PE ratio of 24.52, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.59.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.01. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 42.50%. The business had revenue of $10.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.15%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 78.23%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,968,753.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total value of $3,491,990.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,594,097.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock valued at $22,795,742. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.09.

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.