Connors Investor Services Inc. Sells 13,968 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Connors Investor Services Inc. trimmed its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 7.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 167,696 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,968 shares during the quarter. Connors Investor Services Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $10,441,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Howard Capital Management Group LLC increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 399,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,716,000 after buying an additional 2,069 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 25.0% during the third quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 17,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,258,000 after acquiring an additional 3,500 shares during the period. Bard Financial Services Inc. increased its position in Coca-Cola by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. now owns 182,521 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,116,000 after buying an additional 680 shares during the period. Aldebaran Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 21.4% in the 3rd quarter. Aldebaran Financial Inc. now owns 11,711 shares of the company’s stock valued at $842,000 after purchasing an additional 2,065 shares during the period. Finally, Wealthquest Corp bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter valued at $412,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total value of $3,882,079.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $10,327,339.35. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now 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 position. 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 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on KO. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. UBS Group lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two equities 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $75.06.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Coca-Cola stock opened at $72.37 on Wednesday. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $60.62 and a twelve month high of $74.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $70.86 and its 200 day moving average is $66.53. The company has a market capitalization of $311.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.30, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $11.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.23 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. The firm’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.72 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.82%. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.59%.

About Coca-Cola

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.