E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. Acquires Shares of 507 The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 21.5% during the first 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. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 2.9% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 38,701,876 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,463,373,000 after acquiring an additional 1,084,475 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 1.1% during the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 16,362,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,041,479,000 after acquiring an additional 177,241 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 30.5% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 12,698,984 shares of the company’s stock worth $776,924,000 after acquiring an additional 2,964,850 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 15.7% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 10,433,875 shares of the company’s stock worth $638,344,000 after acquiring an additional 1,417,930 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of KO stock opened at $65.92 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $70.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.08. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $56.06 and a one year high of $73.53. The firm has a market cap of $283.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.60.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.92% and a return on equity of 43.62%. The firm had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 38,653 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.01, for a total transaction of $2,667,443.53. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $7,179,360.66. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,987,070.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 38,653 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.01, for a total transaction of $2,667,443.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 319,005 shares of company stock valued at $22,198,147 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

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.