The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Stock Holdings Lowered by Zuckerman Investment Group LLC

Zuckerman Investment Group LLC lessened its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,638 shares of the company’s stock after selling 196 shares during the period. Zuckerman Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $294,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on KO shares. DZ Bank raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $69.75 on Thursday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $300.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.95. The company’s 50-day moving average is $69.27 and its 200 day moving average is $66.36.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. On average, equities 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 was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.92%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is 82.59%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other news, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total transaction of $1,806,547.19. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were 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.

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.