Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Has $3.43 Million Stock Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 10.7% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 47,665 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,613 shares during the period. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $3,425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the second quarter worth about $27,000. ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth about $28,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $36,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the business’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 value of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,933,220.38. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the business’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 value of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,933,220.38. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $1,321,606.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,968,095. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 303,748 shares of company stock valued at $20,677,431. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on KO. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.36.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Coca-Cola stock opened at $63.02 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $69.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $271.48 billion, a PE ratio of 26.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.84 and a beta of 0.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $56.70 and a 1-year high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.74 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

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

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.