Lynch & Associates IN Lowers Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Lynch & Associates IN lessened its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.7% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 100,374 shares of the company’s stock after selling 739 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola comprises 1.6% of Lynch & Associates IN’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Lynch & Associates IN’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $7,189,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in KO. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth $3,402,151,000. Capital International Investors raised its position in Coca-Cola by 96.0% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 24,949,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,553,337,000 after purchasing an additional 12,222,885 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Coca-Cola by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 74,163,187 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,617,400,000 after purchasing an additional 11,569,920 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at about $500,192,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Coca-Cola by 21.9% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,103,772 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,123,301,000 after purchasing an additional 6,118,819 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.7%

NYSE KO opened at $70.51 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $303.50 billion, a PE ratio of 28.55, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1 year low of $60.62 and a 1 year high of $74.38. The business’s 50-day moving average is $71.60 and its 200 day moving average is $67.94.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 81.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $81.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. 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 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $76.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total transaction of $6,391,355.22. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 205,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,815,287.99. The trade was a 30.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $19,197,000.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 275,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. The trade was a 49.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 415,387 shares of company stock valued at $29,923,985. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.