The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Bought by Brighton Jones LLC

Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 2.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,410 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 818 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,969,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 80,448,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,503,484,000 after buying an additional 1,950,146 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Coca-Cola by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 63,138,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,501,789,000 after purchasing an additional 2,464,618 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 44,913,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,514,234,000 after purchasing an additional 2,040,664 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 25,845,340 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,446,822,000 after purchasing an additional 1,963,963 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 16.4% in the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 13,804,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $813,523,000 after purchasing an additional 1,949,500 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

KO stock opened at $61.60 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $60.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $59.02. The company has a market cap of $265.57 billion, a PE ratio of 24.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.54 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $51.55 and a 12-month high of $64.25.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.01 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 42.50%. The company’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.68 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.485 per share. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 78.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total transaction of $1,102,114.91. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total value of $3,491,990.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $13,594,097.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,102,114.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 323,107 shares of company stock valued at $19,657,742. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.22.

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.