Empirical Asset Management LLC Raises Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Empirical Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 800.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 115,895 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 103,018 shares during the quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $7,216,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the third quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $58,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

NYSE:KO opened at $62.27 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $268.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $62.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.44. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued 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 return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. The business had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.61 billion. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.74 EPS. Analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $6,403,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. The trade was a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $82.00 to $72.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.60.

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.