The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Acquired by Suvretta Capital Management LLC

Suvretta Capital Management LLC grew its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 93.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,137,853 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 548,941 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola makes up 2.4% of Suvretta Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Suvretta Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $70,843,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of KO. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth $3,402,151,000. Capital International Investors increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 96.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 24,949,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,553,337,000 after purchasing an additional 12,222,885 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 74,163,187 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,617,400,000 after purchasing an additional 11,569,920 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at $500,192,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 21.9% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,103,772 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,123,301,000 after purchasing an additional 6,118,819 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

KO opened at $72.01 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.76. The firm has a market cap of $309.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.15, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $60.62 and a twelve month high of $74.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

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

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.83%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total transaction of $6,391,355.22. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 205,511 shares in the company, valued at $14,815,287.99. This represents a 30.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 462,407 shares of company stock worth $32,990,056 in the last ninety days. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on KO. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $75.59.

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.