Stack Financial Management Inc Cuts Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Stack Financial Management Inc reduced its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 2.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 336,541 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,913 shares during the period. Coca-Cola accounts for about 2.2% of Stack Financial Management Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Stack Financial Management Inc’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $19,832,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Bailard Inc. grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 17.2% in the fourth quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 120,658 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,110,000 after purchasing an additional 17,664 shares during the last quarter. BIP Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. BIP Wealth LLC now owns 34,456 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,031,000 after buying an additional 382 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 91,941 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,418,000 after buying an additional 4,720 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 17.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 3,393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $200,000 after buying an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wynn Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at $1,198,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,594,097.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of Coca-Cola stock traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $61.79. The stock had a trading volume of 3,240,801 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,897,646. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $60.07 and its 200 day moving average is $58.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $266.39 billion, a PE ratio of 24.87, a PEG ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.59. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $51.55 and a twelve month high of $64.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $10.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.68 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 42.50%. The company’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.45 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.14%. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is 78.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on KO. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.22.

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.