Insider Selling: The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) CEO Sells $10,327,339.35 in Stock

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO opened at $71.20 on Friday. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $57.93 and a 52-week high of $73.53. 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 business’s 50 day moving average price is $64.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.51. The firm has a market cap of $306.22 billion, a PE ratio of 28.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities analysts anticipate 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.87%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 82.59%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coca-Cola

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. bought a new stake in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth $18,383,000. Balentine LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 92.4% during the third quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 28,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,048,000 after buying an additional 13,685 shares in the last quarter. Rice Partnership LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,397,000 after buying an additional 6,793 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 104.9% during the third quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 116,214 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,351,000 after buying an additional 59,503 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 87.7% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 18,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,132,000 after buying an additional 8,499 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KO has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to 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.