The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Stake Raised by Bailard Inc.

Bailard Inc. increased its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 129,073 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,703 shares during the period. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $8,036,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. MilWealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $71.20 on Friday. 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 firm has a market cap of $306.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.82, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $64.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.51. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52 week low of $57.93 and a 52 week high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued 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, equities research analysts expect 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.87%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total value of $3,882,079.68. Following the sale, the insider now owns 246,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value 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 trade represents a 29.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 232,646 shares of company stock valued at $16,515,469 in the last 90 days. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.