The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Decatur Capital Management Inc.

Decatur Capital Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 46,565 shares of the company’s stock after selling 682 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola comprises 1.3% of Decatur Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Decatur Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $2,899,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of KO. Peachtree Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Peachtree Investment Partners LLC now owns 11,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $697,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC raised its position in Coca-Cola by 3.3% during the fourth 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 during the period. Excalibur Management Corp lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Excalibur Management Corp now owns 29,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,831,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 3,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $225,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlas Brown Inc. grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 21,024 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,309,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

NYSE KO opened at $72.99 on Friday. 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 $70.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $314.13 billion, a PE ratio of 29.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $59.00 and a twelve month high of $73.95.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. Research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.79%. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KO has been the subject of several research reports. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.59.

Insider Activity

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total transaction of $10,327,339.35. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,324,191.46. The trade was a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total value of $3,882,079.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,520,662.64. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071. Company insiders own 0.90% 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.