Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. lifted its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 8.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 179,740 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 13,768 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola makes up 1.5% of Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $11,191,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. MilWealth Group LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $10,327,339.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,324,191.46. This represents a 29.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on KO. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Coca-Cola stock opened at $69.16 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $297.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. 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 $73.53. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $66.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.61.

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

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.95%. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 82.59%.

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.