The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Acquired by XML Financial LLC

XML Financial LLC boosted its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 7.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 25,541 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,704 shares during the period. XML Financial LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,563,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Pineridge Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 8.4% in the first quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC now owns 2,265 shares of the company’s stock valued at $139,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp increased its position in Coca-Cola by 14.5% in the 1st quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 57,022 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,489,000 after acquiring an additional 7,226 shares during the period. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. bought a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 1st quarter valued at $452,000. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.2% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 6,724,569 shares of the company’s stock worth $411,409,000 after purchasing an additional 80,749 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 8.4% during the first quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 154,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,720,000 after purchasing an additional 11,992 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:KO traded up $1.22 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $67.96. The stock had a trading volume of 15,733,953 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,935,686. The company’s 50 day moving average is $63.73 and its 200-day moving average is $61.65. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $51.55 and a 12-month high of $68.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.08. The company has a market cap of $292.90 billion, a PE ratio of 26.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.59.

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

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on KO. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Coca-Cola in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 80,891 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.34, for a total transaction of $5,042,744.94. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 218,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,644,979.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 80,891 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.34, for a total transaction of $5,042,744.94. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 218,880 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,644,979.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 57,298 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $3,551,903.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now 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 three months, insiders sold 879,375 shares of company stock worth $571,502,245. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.