Community Trust & Investment Co. Lowers Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Community Trust & Investment Co. lowered its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,220 shares of the company’s stock after selling 556 shares during the period. Community Trust & Investment Co.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $3,753,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. New Millennium Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 65.0% during the 1st quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 523 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $69.45 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $65.94. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $54.04 and a 12-month high of $73.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $299.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.78, a PEG ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.60.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 43.62% and a net margin of 22.92%. The firm had revenue of $12.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.78 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. Coca-Cola’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Cfra restated a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Bank of America upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.00.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 37,787 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.96, for a total transaction of $2,530,217.52. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,954,176.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 37,787 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.96, for a total value of $2,530,217.52. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $14,954,176.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 38,653 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.01, for a total transaction of $2,667,443.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 356,792 shares of company stock worth $24,728,364. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

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.