The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Acquired by Natixis

Natixis raised its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 897.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,356,125 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,220,150 shares during the period. Coca-Cola makes up 0.5% of Natixis’ portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Natixis’ holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $84,432,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.9% in the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

NYSE KO opened at $72.99 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $314.13 billion, a PE ratio of 29.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $70.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.42. 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 Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $59.00 and a twelve month high of $73.95.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. Research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 82.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on KO shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. DZ Bank raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $74.59.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Coca-Cola news, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total transaction of $1,806,547.19. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 52,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,749,745.02. This represents a 32.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $961,317.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 94,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,769,334. This represents a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.