The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. trimmed its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 28.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,385,943 shares of the company’s stock after selling 938,564 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.06% of Coca-Cola worth $148,498,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC now owns 4,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $311,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Excalibur Management Corp grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Excalibur Management Corp now owns 29,412 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,831,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 3,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. increased its position in Coca-Cola by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 21,024 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,309,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 39,198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,440,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total value of $1,806,547.19. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 52,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,749,745.02. The trade was a 32.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on KO shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of KO opened at $69.87 on Friday. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1 year low of $57.93 and a 1 year high of $73.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $300.67 billion, a PE ratio of 28.29, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.45.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is 82.59%.

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.