NBT Bank N A NY Cuts Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

NBT Bank N A NY lessened its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 92,568 shares of the company’s stock after selling 816 shares during the quarter. NBT Bank N A NY’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $5,763,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in KO. 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 during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 13.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 92,961,376 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,680,205,000 after purchasing an additional 11,206,995 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $500,192,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,615,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,271,885,000 after buying an additional 4,013,996 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $269,382,000. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

KO opened at $71.52 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $307.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.96, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $65.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.56. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $57.93 and a 12-month high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KO. TD Cowen upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted 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 report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays boosted 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price 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 analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.24.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total transaction of $10,327,339.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at $24,324,191.46. This represents a 29.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total transaction of $3,882,079.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 232,646 shares of company stock valued at $16,515,469 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

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.