Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Grows Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 739.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 400,083 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 352,418 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $24,909,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of KO. Voleon Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,513,000. Rice Partnership LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,397,000 after purchasing an additional 6,793 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 87.7% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 18,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,132,000 after purchasing an additional 8,499 shares in the last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth $1,582,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 893,192 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,610,000 after acquiring an additional 8,810 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of KO stock opened at $71.69 on Friday. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $60.62 and a twelve month high of $74.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $70.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The company has a market capitalization of $308.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.02, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. The business had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.72 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.85%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on KO shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $75.59.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total value of $1,344,732.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.