The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Westwood Holdings Group Inc.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 27.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 52,329 shares of the company’s stock after selling 19,984 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $3,258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Hoey Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the period. Finally, MilWealth Group LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on KO. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. UBS Group boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.59.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $71.69 on Wednesday. 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 Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $60.62 and a 52-week high of $74.38. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $70.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.86. The company has a market capitalization of $308.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.02, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47.

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

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.85%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was 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 approximately $14,815,287.99. This represents a 30.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 462,407 shares of company stock worth $32,990,056. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.