The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Acquired by Financial Counselors Inc.

Financial Counselors Inc. raised its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 308,405 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,099 shares during the quarter. Financial Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $19,201,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, MilWealth Group LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.1 %

KO stock opened at $68.85 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $67.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.40. 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 $296.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.87, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $57.93 and a one year high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. As a group, sell-side 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 issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was 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 SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total transaction of $1,806,547.19. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 52,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,749,745.02. This trade represents a 32.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on KO. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. DZ Bank raised shares of 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. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two research 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.24.

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.