Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Boosts Stock Position in CocaCola Company (The) $KO

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) by 4.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 869,510 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 38,547 shares during the quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in CocaCola were worth $60,787,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its position in shares of CocaCola by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 93,103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,509,000 after purchasing an additional 5,010 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in CocaCola by 14.1% in the fourth quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 281,764 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,698,000 after acquiring an additional 34,860 shares during the last quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in CocaCola by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 46,578 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,256,000 after acquiring an additional 1,846 shares during the last quarter. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. acquired a new position in CocaCola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in CocaCola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CocaCola Stock Down 1.8%

NYSE:KO opened at $78.96 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $77.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.06. CocaCola Company has a 52 week low of $65.35 and a 52 week high of $82.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $339.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.35.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.05. CocaCola had a return on equity of 40.55% and a net margin of 27.80%.The company had revenue of $12.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.73 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.240-3.270 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that CocaCola Company will post 3.26 EPS for the current year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. CocaCola’s dividend payout ratio is 66.67%.

Insider Activity at CocaCola

In other CocaCola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 31,625 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.93, for a total transaction of $2,559,411.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $18,074,096.90. This represents a 12.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO John Murphy sold 72,449 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.52, for a total value of $5,833,593.48. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 279,917 shares in the company, valued at $22,538,916.84. This trade represents a 20.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 630,963 shares of company stock valued at $50,016,979 over the last ninety days. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Truist Financial set a $85.00 price objective on CocaCola in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. UBS Group upped their price objective on CocaCola from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on CocaCola from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on CocaCola from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $85.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, CocaCola currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $86.80.

CocaCola Profile

The Coca‑Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a global beverage manufacturer, marketer and distributor best known for its flagship Coca‑Cola soda. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company develops and sells concentrates, syrups and finished beverages across a broad portfolio of brands. Its product range spans sparkling soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready‑to‑drink teas and coffees, and other still beverages, marketed under both global and regional brand names.

Coca‑Cola’s brand portfolio includes widely recognized names such as Coca‑Cola, Diet Coke, Coca‑Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade and Dasani, and in recent years the company has expanded into the coffee and premium beverage categories through acquisitions such as Costa Coffee.