The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Stake Cut by MTM Investment Management LLC

MTM Investment Management LLC cut its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 6.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 56,670 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,987 shares during the period. Coca-Cola accounts for about 1.5% of MTM Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest position. MTM Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $3,607,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 21.5% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 49,297,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,016,023,000 after purchasing an additional 8,733,326 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,808,056,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,171,216 shares of the company’s stock valued at $894,028,000 after acquiring an additional 814,779 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Vontobel Asset Management Inc. now owns 14,337,691 shares of the company’s stock valued at $890,866,000 after acquiring an additional 378,447 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 30.5% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 12,698,984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $776,924,000 after acquiring an additional 2,964,850 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of KO traded up $1.07 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $70.86. 12,910,136 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 12,989,852. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $51.55 and a 1-year high of $70.92. The business has a fifty day moving average of $65.91 and a 200-day moving average of $62.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $305.26 billion, a PE ratio of 28.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.59.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 43.62% and a net margin of 22.92%. The firm had revenue of $12.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Argus raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 price objective on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.20.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 80,891 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.34, for a total transaction of $5,042,744.94. Following the sale, the insider now owns 218,880 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,644,979.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 80,891 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.34, for a total transaction of $5,042,744.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 218,880 shares in the company, valued at $13,644,979.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $7,179,360.66. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,987,070.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,014,029 shares of company stock valued at $581,682,074 over the last 90 days. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.