CocaCola Company (The) $KO Shares Bought by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) by 2.4% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 353,665 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 8,131 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in CocaCola were worth $28,742,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of CocaCola by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 374,771,512 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,200,276,000 after acquiring an additional 5,886,352 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in CocaCola by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 167,850,330 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,734,417,000 after purchasing an additional 1,992,327 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in CocaCola by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 89,984,203 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,273,037,000 after purchasing an additional 433,547 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in CocaCola in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,865,807,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in CocaCola by 9.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 44,018,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,347,642,000 after purchasing an additional 3,836,640 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on KO shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $93.00 target price on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $100.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Bank of America lifted their price target on CocaCola from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of CocaCola in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on CocaCola from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.76.

Insider Transactions at CocaCola

In other CocaCola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 75,727 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.65, for a total transaction of $6,788,925.55. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 35,393 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,172,982.45. The trade was a 68.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Chairman James Quincey sold 436,296 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.13, for a total value of $34,960,398.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 122,833 shares in the company, valued at $9,842,608.29. This trade represents a 78.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 1,433,535 shares of company stock worth $121,922,698 over the last ninety days. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting CocaCola

Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong earnings underpin investor confidence: Coca-Cola’s latest quarter exceeded expectations, with EPS of $0.97 versus the $0.93 consensus and revenue of $13.37 billion versus $13.17 billion expected. Revenue increased 6.2% year over year, while full-year 2026 guidance remains $3.27–$3.30 in EPS. The debates that matter for KO stock
• Positive Sentiment: Profit estimates are moving higher: Zacks Research raised its FY2026 EPS forecast to $3.29 from $3.26, FY2027 to $3.51 from $3.47 and FY2028 to $3.74 from $3.71. Several quarterly estimates were also increased, suggesting analysts see continued earnings momentum. Coca-Cola analyst estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Defensive and dividend characteristics remain attractive: Coca-Cola’s globally recognized brands, approximately 2.4% dividend yield and long dividend-growth record make KO appealing to income-oriented investors seeking stability while markets become less certain. Its long-standing Berkshire Hathaway holding also reinforces the stock’s “buy and hold” reputation. Warren Buffett stocks to buy and hold
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are monitoring consumer pressure: Articles focus on gasoline prices, inflation data and their potential effect on household spending. Coca-Cola’s affordable beverage portfolio may prove relatively resilient, although sustained cost-of-living pressure could affect volumes or product mix. Coca-Cola and gasoline prices
• Neutral Sentiment: International bottler updates have limited direct impact: Coca-Cola İçecek’s disclosures about its regional bottling network and debt redemption relate primarily to the separate bottler, COLZF, rather than directly to KO. Coca-Cola Icecek bottling network
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation creates downside risk: After its recent rally, KO trades near 26 times earnings. Analysts are debating whether the premium is justified by Coca-Cola’s growth and margin performance, leaving less room for disappointment. Coca-Cola valuation analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling may weigh modestly on sentiment: Insider Sanket Ray sold 9,958 shares for about $861,000, reducing his direct holding by 13.8%. The transaction is not necessarily a fundamental warning, but it could attract attention at elevated share-price levels. Coca-Cola insider sale

CocaCola Stock Up 1.0%

KO stock opened at $87.57 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $83.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $79.75. CocaCola Company has a 52 week low of $65.35 and a 52 week high of $90.92. The company has a market cap of $376.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.30, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.33.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.04. CocaCola had a net margin of 28.56% and a return on equity of 39.38%. The company had revenue of $13.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.17 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.270-3.300 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that CocaCola Company will post 3.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. CocaCola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.66%.

About CocaCola

The Coca‑Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a global beverage manufacturer, marketer and distributor best known for its flagship Coca‑Cola soda. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company develops and sells concentrates, syrups and finished beverages across a broad portfolio of brands. Its product range spans sparkling soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready‑to‑drink teas and coffees, and other still beverages, marketed under both global and regional brand names.

Coca‑Cola’s brand portfolio includes widely recognized names such as Coca‑Cola, Diet Coke, Coca‑Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade and Dasani, and in recent years the company has expanded into the coffee and premium beverage categories through acquisitions such as Costa Coffee.