Employees Retirement System of Texas Reduces Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Employees Retirement System of Texas decreased its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 9.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,234,731 shares of the company’s stock after selling 129,867 shares during the period. Employees Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $76,874,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. REAP Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 57.5% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 570 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.9%

KO stock opened at $71.81 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $309.09 billion, a PE ratio of 29.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $71.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $60.62 and a fifty-two week high of $74.38.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.23 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. The business’s revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.72 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 81.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KO has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. DZ Bank upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $75.81.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $10,327,339.35. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,324,191.46. This represents a 29.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total value of $3,882,079.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,520,662.64. The trade was a 18.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 443,349 shares of company stock valued at $31,645,324 in the last ninety days. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.