Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. Boosts Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 22.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 73,881 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,566 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $4,354,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of KO. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 80,448,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,503,484,000 after purchasing an additional 1,950,146 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 63,138,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,501,789,000 after buying an additional 2,464,618 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 44,913,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,514,234,000 after acquiring an additional 2,040,664 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 8.2% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 25,845,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,446,822,000 after acquiring an additional 1,963,963 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 16.4% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 13,804,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $813,523,000 after acquiring an additional 1,949,500 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

NYSE KO traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $62.17. The company had a trading volume of 11,628,675 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,782,690. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $51.55 and a fifty-two week high of $64.25. The firm has a market cap of $268.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.22 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.06.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.41% and a return on equity of 42.74%. The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.68 EPS. Coca-Cola’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total value of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the transaction, 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 filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the business’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 owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 323,107 shares of company stock valued at $19,657,742 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup raised their price objective 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. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.27.

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.