Bell Bank Decreases Stock Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Bell Bank lowered its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 9.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,611 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,492 shares during the quarter. Bell Bank’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,691,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KO. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth $3,402,151,000. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 96.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 24,949,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,553,337,000 after buying an additional 12,222,885 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position 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 in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at about $500,192,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 21.9% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,103,772 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,123,301,000 after buying an additional 6,118,819 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $70.51 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $303.50 billion, a PE ratio of 28.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $71.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $67.94. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $60.62 and a one year high of $74.38. 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 issued 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 for 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 quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.72 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.60%.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction 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 trade represents a 49.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.87, for a total transaction of $4,335,629.62. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 187,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,491,148.92. This represents a 24.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 415,387 shares of company stock valued at $29,923,985. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on KO. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $81.00 target price on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $76.00.

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.