Bell Asset Management Ltd Increases Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Bell Asset Management Ltd lifted its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 106.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 144,024 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 74,419 shares during the period. Coca-Cola makes up about 1.6% of Bell Asset Management Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Bell Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $8,967,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 3.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 92,957,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,664,005,000 after purchasing an additional 2,966,964 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 74,163,187 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,617,400,000 after acquiring an additional 11,569,920 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,402,151,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 21.9% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,103,772 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,123,301,000 after purchasing an additional 6,118,819 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 18,313,696 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,130,138,000 after acquiring an additional 550,582 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of Coca-Cola stock opened at $69.87 on Monday. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $57.93 and a one year high of $73.95. The company has a market capitalization of $300.67 billion, a PE ratio of 28.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. 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 company has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.38.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. Research analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.92%. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 82.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $961,317.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at $6,769,334. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total value of $3,882,079.68. Following 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on KO shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective 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. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, DZ Bank raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.24.

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.