Hancock Whitney Corp Boosts Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Hancock Whitney Corp grew its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 8.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 47,100 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,791 shares during the quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $2,932,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of KO. Rice Partnership LLC boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,397,000 after acquiring an additional 6,793 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 87.7% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 18,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,132,000 after purchasing an additional 8,499 shares during the last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,582,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 222.9% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 192,237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,814,000 after purchasing an additional 132,701 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 893,192 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,610,000 after buying an additional 8,810 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $72.51 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $312.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.36, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $60.62 and a one year high of $74.38. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $70.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating 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, analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 82.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KO has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. DZ Bank raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. TD Cowen raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total transaction of $1,806,547.19. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 52,466 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,749,745.02. This trade represents a 32.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071 in the last ninety days. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Coca-Cola 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.