Impax Asset Management Group plc Sells 20,950 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Impax Asset Management Group plc decreased its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 12.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 145,483 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,950 shares during the quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $10,454,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of KO. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the third quarter valued at approximately $18,383,000. Balentine LLC lifted its position in Coca-Cola by 92.4% in the third quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 28,493 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,048,000 after purchasing an additional 13,685 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in Coca-Cola by 4.8% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 457,782 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,895,000 after purchasing an additional 21,005 shares during the last quarter. United Bank lifted its position in Coca-Cola by 65.4% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 80,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,813,000 after purchasing an additional 31,979 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisor Resource Council bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the third quarter valued at approximately $769,000. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 1.3 %

KO stock opened at $61.73 on Friday. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $56.70 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. The business’s 50-day moving average is $68.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.48. 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 company has a market cap of $265.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.61.

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

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 80.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,968,095. This trade represents a 7.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the 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 owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,987,070.92. This represents a 18.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 303,748 shares of company stock worth $20,677,431 over the last quarter. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on KO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com cut Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Hsbc Global Res raised Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Cfra reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.36.

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.