CX Institutional Cuts Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

CX Institutional lowered its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 67.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,493 shares of the company’s stock after selling 84,821 shares during the quarter. CX Institutional’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $2,900,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. REAP Financial Group LLC raised its position in Coca-Cola by 57.5% in the fourth quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 570 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares during the period. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 41.9% in 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 during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Coca-Cola stock opened at $72.03 on Thursday. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $60.62 and a 1-year high of $74.38. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $310.02 billion, a PE ratio of 29.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $71.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.74.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly 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. 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 quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.83%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 81.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on KO shares. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Cfra Research upgraded Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Two research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $76.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total value of $6,391,355.22. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 205,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,815,287.99. This represents a 30.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.87, for a total value of $4,335,629.62. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 187,716 shares in the company, valued at $13,491,148.92. The trade was a 24.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 415,387 shares of company stock worth $29,923,985. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by 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.