KBC Group NV Sells 1,169,504 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

KBC Group NV decreased its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 52.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,058,724 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,169,504 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $76,079,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of KO. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 21.5% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 49,297,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,016,023,000 after buying an additional 8,733,326 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the second quarter valued at $188,448,000. M&G Plc bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 1st quarter valued at about $157,087,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 7,006.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,478,487 shares of the company’s stock worth $178,104,000 after purchasing an additional 2,443,612 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 42.6% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 6,245,331 shares of the company’s stock valued at $397,515,000 after purchasing an additional 1,866,348 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on KO. Truist Financial boosted their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Cfra reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.36.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $7,179,360.66. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,987,070.92. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $7,179,360.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,987,070.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 40,334 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.54, for a total value of $2,804,826.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,067 shares in the company, valued at $5,150,619.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 303,748 shares of company stock worth $20,677,431. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $63.02 on Thursday. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52 week low of $56.70 and a 52 week high of $73.53. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $69.18 and its 200 day moving average is $66.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $271.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.04, a PEG ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $11.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.61 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.45% and a return on equity of 44.01%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.74 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 80.17%.

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.