Operose Advisors LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Operose Advisors LLC cut its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 47.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,522 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,350 shares during the period. Operose Advisors LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $95,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Howard Capital Management Group LLC boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 399,607 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,716,000 after purchasing an additional 2,069 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 25.0% in the third quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 17,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,258,000 after buying an additional 3,500 shares in the last quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 0.4% during the third quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. now owns 182,521 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,116,000 after acquiring an additional 680 shares during the last quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 21.4% during the third quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. now owns 11,711 shares of the company’s stock worth $842,000 after acquiring an additional 2,065 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthquest Corp purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter valued at about $412,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO opened at $71.89 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $69.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.36. 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 Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $57.93 and a 1-year high of $73.95. The stock has a market cap of $309.37 billion, a PE ratio of 29.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45.

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

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on KO shares. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. DZ Bank upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.24.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $961,317.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at $6,769,334. This represents a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071 in the last three months. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Coca-Cola 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.