The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Holdings Trimmed by Aufman Associates Inc

Aufman Associates Inc lowered its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,993 shares of the company’s stock after selling 299 shares during the period. Aufman Associates Inc’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $249,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its position in Coca-Cola by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 399,607 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,716,000 after buying an additional 2,069 shares in the last quarter. Cynosure Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 46.4% during the third quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 5,057 shares of the company’s stock worth $363,000 after acquiring an additional 1,602 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 17.1% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 140,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,126,000 after purchasing an additional 20,600 shares during the last quarter. Suvretta Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 5.0% during the third quarter. Suvretta Capital Management LLC now owns 588,912 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,319,000 after purchasing an additional 28,299 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWS Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 10.1% in the third quarter. CWS Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $553,000 after purchasing an additional 706 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm’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 owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at 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 shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total value of $1,344,732.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

NYSE KO opened at $70.36 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $67.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $302.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.49, a P/E/G 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 52-week low of $57.93 and a 52-week high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. Equities research 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 will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.51 dividend. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KO has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Two equities 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.24.

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.