Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. Lowers Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. trimmed its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 2.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 107,779 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,687 shares during the quarter. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $6,710,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Hoey Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MilWealth Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.3%

KO opened at $71.69 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $70.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.86. The company has a market capitalization of $308.57 billion, a PE ratio of 29.02, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $60.62 and a 1-year 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.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 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 revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.72 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.85%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 81.60%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total transaction of $3,882,079.68. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $10,327,339.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 462,407 shares of company stock worth $32,990,056. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Cfra Research raised Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, 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 report on Thursday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.59.

About Coca-Cola

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.