Bridges Investment Management Inc. Acquires 743 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Bridges Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 54,899 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 743 shares during the quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $3,418,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. MilWealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $71.20 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $64.53 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $306.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.82, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $57.93 and a 52-week high of $73.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.87%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is 82.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. DZ Bank raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.24.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total value of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $961,317.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at $6,769,334. This represents a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 232,646 shares of company stock valued at $16,515,469. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.