Griffith & Werner Inc. Buys New Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Griffith & Werner Inc. purchased a new stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 90,677 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,646,000. Coca-Cola accounts for about 3.7% of Griffith & Werner Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Hoey Investments Inc. lifted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MilWealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $71.81 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $71.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $60.62 and a 52-week high of $74.38. The firm has a market cap of $309.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.07, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.72 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.84%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 81.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on KO shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. DZ Bank raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $75.81.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.87, for a total value of $4,335,629.62. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 187,716 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,491,148.92. This trade represents a 24.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total value of $6,391,355.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 205,511 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,815,287.99. This trade represents a 30.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 462,407 shares of company stock worth $32,990,056. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.