Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. Boosts Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. increased its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 37,798 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,126 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $2,716,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KO. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Mount Lucas Management LP purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the company. Cfra reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Barclays cut their target price on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Hsbc Global Res raised Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.14.

Coca-Cola Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of KO opened at $63.67 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $67.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $57.47 and a twelve month high of $73.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $274.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $11.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.74 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.05%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total value of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at $21,933,220.38. The trade was a 22.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.