The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Bought by Access Financial Services Inc.

Access Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 34.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,454 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,360 shares during the period. Coca-Cola accounts for about 0.8% of Access Financial Services Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Access Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $2,038,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. REAP Financial Group LLC lifted 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 valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the period. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.9% in the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $70.94 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $71.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $67.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $305.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52 week low of $60.62 and a 52 week high of $74.38.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $11.13 billion during 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 company’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.72 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.60%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $19,197,000.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 275,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. This represents a 49.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total transaction of $6,391,355.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 205,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,815,287.99. This represents a 30.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 415,387 shares of company stock worth $29,923,985 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KO has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $76.00.

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.