Intact Investment Management Inc. Acquires 72,100 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Intact Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 41.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 246,200 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 72,100 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $15,328,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,910,000. Integras Partners LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth approximately $406,000. Madison Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth approximately $718,000. Impact Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,060,000. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 1,719,907 shares of the company’s stock worth $107,081,000 after buying an additional 9,015 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on KO shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price objective on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.24.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other news, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total transaction of $1,806,547.19. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 52,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,749,745.02. This represents a 32.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071 in the last ninety days. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO opened at $69.59 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $66.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.63. The company has a market capitalization of $299.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. Research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

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.