Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA Has $36.23 Million Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA lifted its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 23.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 508,606 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 97,048 shares during the quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $36,228,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 74,163,187 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,617,400,000 after buying an additional 11,569,920 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $3,402,151,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,802,296 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,727,131,000 after purchasing an additional 3,811,756 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 21.9% during 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 last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors grew 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.4%

KO opened at $72.03 on Thursday. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $60.62 and a twelve month high of $74.38. The firm has a market cap of $310.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.16, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $71.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $67.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $11.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.23 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. The company’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.72 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 81.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. DZ Bank raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Cfra Research upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $76.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total value of $6,391,355.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 205,511 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,815,287.99. This trade represents a 30.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $19,197,000.18. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 275,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. This represents a 49.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 415,387 shares of company stock worth $29,923,985. 0.97% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.