Assetmark Inc. Purchases 43,836 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 40.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 152,901 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 43,836 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $9,520,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of KO. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. MilWealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

KO opened at $71.52 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $65.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.60. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $307.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.96, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $57.93 and a 52-week high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share 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%. As a group, analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors 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 represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on KO shares. TD Cowen raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.24.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction 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 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 through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $10,327,339.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 232,646 shares of company stock worth $16,515,469. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Coca-Cola 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.