The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Acquired by Braun Stacey Associates Inc.

Braun Stacey Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 411.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 313,440 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 252,174 shares during the quarter. Braun Stacey Associates Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $22,524,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Apella Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 10,533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $748,000 after buying an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Investment Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 4.5% during the third quarter. Investment Advisory Group LLC now owns 3,378 shares of the company’s stock worth $243,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 2.2% during the second quarter. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,871 shares of the company’s stock worth $437,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. CCG Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 4.3% during the third quarter. CCG Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,614 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Finally, Investment Partners Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 2.2% during the third quarter. Investment Partners Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,956 shares of the company’s stock worth $500,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Cfra reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Hsbc Global Res raised Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.36.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $61.74 on Monday. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $56.70 and a twelve month high of $73.53. The firm has a market cap of $265.96 billion, a PE ratio of 25.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.06. The business has a fifty day moving average of $68.63 and a 200-day moving average of $66.54.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.61 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.74 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is 80.17%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 40,334 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.54, for a total transaction of $2,804,826.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,150,619.18. This trade represents a 35.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total value of $6,403,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. This represents a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 303,748 shares of company stock worth $20,677,431 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

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.