The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Eastern Bank

Eastern Bank reduced its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 167,584 shares of the company’s stock after selling 710 shares during the period. Eastern Bank’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $10,434,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in KO. FMR LLC grew its position in Coca-Cola by 13.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 92,961,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,680,205,000 after purchasing an additional 11,206,995 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Coca-Cola by 3.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 92,957,028 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,664,005,000 after acquiring an additional 2,966,964 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Coca-Cola by 2.9% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 38,701,876 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,463,373,000 after acquiring an additional 1,084,475 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Coca-Cola by 14.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,615,428 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,271,885,000 after acquiring an additional 4,013,996 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,933,220.38. This trade represents a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

KO traded up $0.53 on Monday, hitting $61.60. 10,971,298 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,207,906. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $57.93 and a 12 month high of $73.53. The business has a 50-day moving average of $62.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $265.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.45, a PEG ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.03. The business 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%. Coca-Cola’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.74 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.60.

Coca-Cola 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.