Comerica Bank Sells 46,093 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Comerica Bank cut its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,474,046 shares of the company’s stock after selling 46,093 shares during the quarter. Comerica Bank’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $91,774,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rice Partnership LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,397,000 after purchasing an additional 6,793 shares during the period. Fiduciary Alliance LLC raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 87.7% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 18,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,132,000 after acquiring an additional 8,499 shares during the period. Clark & Stuart Inc bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,582,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 222.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 192,237 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,814,000 after acquiring an additional 132,701 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew 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 valued at $55,610,000 after purchasing an additional 8,810 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of KO opened at $72.37 on Wednesday. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $60.62 and a 12 month high of $74.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $70.86 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $311.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.23 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. Coca-Cola’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.72 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.59%.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 55,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $3,941,055.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at $17,533,008.09. This represents a 18.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 52,466 shares in the company, valued at $3,749,745.02. This represents a 32.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on KO. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Cfra Research raised Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $75.06.

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.