The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Purchased by Baugh & Associates LLC

Baugh & Associates LLC grew its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 9.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 4,592 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 410 shares during the period. Baugh & Associates LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $281,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 2.5% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 80,448,083 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,503,484,000 after acquiring an additional 1,950,146 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,808,056,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 40,564,179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,390,448,000 after buying an additional 2,893,061 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Coca-Cola by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 15,171,216 shares of the company’s stock worth $894,028,000 after acquiring an additional 814,779 shares during the period. Finally, Vontobel Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Asset Management Inc. now owns 14,337,691 shares of the company’s stock worth $890,866,000 after acquiring an additional 378,447 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $63.71. The stock had a trading volume of 4,092,354 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,018,117. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $62.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $60.71. The company has a market capitalization of $274.46 billion, a PE ratio of 25.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1 year low of $51.55 and a 1 year high of $64.36.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.41% and a return on equity of 42.74%. The company had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.01 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.68 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 77.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 57,298 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $3,551,903.02. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 167,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,358,962.93. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 80,891 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.34, for a total value of $5,042,744.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 218,880 shares in the company, valued at $13,644,979.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 57,298 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $3,551,903.02. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 167,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,358,962.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 223,665 shares of company stock worth $13,995,465. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on KO shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Monday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $68.83.

About Coca-Cola

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.