Howard Capital Management Inc. Increases Position in CocaCola Company (The) $KO

Howard Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) by 29.8% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 29,610 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,798 shares during the quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in CocaCola were worth $2,110,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of KO. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the first quarter worth about $25,000. 1248 Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in shares of CocaCola by 5,142.9% during the second quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 367 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC increased its holdings in CocaCola by 148.4% in the first quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 477 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GFG Capital LLC bought a new stake in CocaCola in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Max R. Levchin bought 7,206 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 24th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $69.87 per share, with a total value of $503,483.22. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 14,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $996,835.29. This trade represents a 102.05% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 37,396 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total value of $2,584,063.60. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 209,513 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,477,348.30. This trade represents a 15.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

CocaCola Stock Up 0.2%

NYSE:KO opened at $70.23 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $302.09 billion, a PE ratio of 23.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 0.43. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $67.84 and a 200-day moving average of $69.73. CocaCola Company has a 52 week low of $60.62 and a 52 week high of $74.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 27th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $11.40 billion during the quarter. CocaCola had a return on equity of 43.62% and a net margin of 27.34%. Analysts predict that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. CocaCola’s dividend payout ratio is 67.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on KO shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on CocaCola from $75.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of CocaCola in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. UBS Group lowered their price objective on CocaCola from $84.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 11th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of CocaCola in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of CocaCola in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and fifteen have given a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CocaCola presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.31.

CocaCola 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.