The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Modera Wealth Management LLC

Modera Wealth Management LLC trimmed its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 185,136 shares of the company’s stock after selling 317 shares during the period. Modera Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $11,527,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 13.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 92,961,376 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,680,205,000 after purchasing an additional 11,206,995 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Coca-Cola by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 92,957,028 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,664,005,000 after buying an additional 2,966,964 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,615,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,271,885,000 after acquiring an additional 4,013,996 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 6.1% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,984,953 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,990,407,000 after acquiring an additional 1,609,565 shares during the period. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 16,021,195 shares of the company’s stock worth $997,480,000 after purchasing an additional 351,462 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of KO opened at $71.20 on Friday. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $57.93 and a 52-week high of $73.53. The stock has a market cap of $306.22 billion, a PE ratio of 28.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $64.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. Research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.87%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on KO shares. Barclays increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. TD Cowen upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.24.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total value of $1,344,732.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total transaction of $3,882,079.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at $17,520,662.64. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 232,646 shares of company stock valued at $16,515,469. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

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.