World Equity Group Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

World Equity Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 20,983 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the quarter. World Equity Group Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,306,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of KO. Howard Capital Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 399,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,716,000 after acquiring an additional 2,069 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 7,792.8% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,744,302 shares of the company’s stock valued at $125,346,000 after acquiring an additional 1,722,202 shares during the period. BayBridge Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. BayBridge Capital Group LLC now owns 21,951 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,577,000 after acquiring an additional 590 shares during the period. Parcion Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 110,903 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,970,000 after acquiring an additional 8,591 shares during the period. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 54.9% during the 3rd quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,469 shares of the company’s stock valued at $465,000 after acquiring an additional 2,293 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $71.37 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $63.71 and its 200 day moving average is $66.42. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1 year low of $57.93 and a 1 year high of $73.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $307.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

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

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 78.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on KO shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 target price on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.82.

About Coca-Cola

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.