The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Stake Raised by Vertex Planning Partners LLC

Vertex Planning Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 16.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,920 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 541 shares during the period. Vertex Planning Partners LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $244,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 0.5% during the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 399,607 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,716,000 after buying an additional 2,069 shares during the last quarter. Cynosure Group LLC boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 46.4% during the third quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 5,057 shares of the company’s stock worth $363,000 after purchasing an additional 1,602 shares during the period. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the third quarter valued at approximately $206,000. Providence Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Providence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 44,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,174,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 2,194,849 shares of the company’s stock worth $157,722,000 after acquiring an additional 364,526 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

NYSE:KO opened at $70.80 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $304.70 billion, a PE ratio of 28.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $67.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.46. 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 12 month low of $57.93 and a 12 month high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on KO shares. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two investment 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.24.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,324,191.46. The trade was a 29.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

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.