Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY Purchases 45,816 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY lifted its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,167,298 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 45,816 shares during the period. Coca-Cola accounts for 2.3% of Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $71,415,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. ZRC Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 213.3% in the 4th quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 8,874 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.31, for a total value of $561,812.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,129,621.78. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 57,298 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $3,551,903.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 167,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,358,962.93. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 8,874 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.31, for a total transaction of $561,812.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,129,621.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 223,665 shares of company stock valued at $13,995,465 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of Coca-Cola stock traded up $1.21 on Monday, reaching $63.98. 13,207,819 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,177,896. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $62.32 and its 200-day moving average is $60.65. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $51.55 and a one year high of $64.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $275.62 billion, a PE ratio of 25.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 0.59.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.41% and a return on equity of 42.74%. The company had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.68 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 77.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Argus upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 14th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.83.

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.