17,101 Shares in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Bought by ZEGA Investments LLC

ZEGA Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 17,101 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,059,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. MilWealth Group LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Hara Capital LLC increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 43.7% during the 4th quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 691 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth approximately $43,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $68.58 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $67.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.52. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $57.93 and a twelve month high of $73.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $295.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm 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 $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.97%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Insider Activity

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $961,317.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 94,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,769,334. The trade was a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total transaction of $3,882,079.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 target price on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Company Profile

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.