3,914 Shares in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Acquired by L.K. Benson & Company P.C.

L.K. Benson & Company P.C. acquired a new stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 3,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $244,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. MilWealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total transaction of $3,882,079.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $961,317.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at $6,769,334. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071 over the last ninety days. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 1.1 %

KO stock opened at $69.34 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $66.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.51. The stock has a market cap of $298.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.07, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $57.93 and a twelve month high of $73.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share 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, equities research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is 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 presently 82.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.24.

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.