GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC Cuts Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC lowered its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.2% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 58,429 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,541 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola makes up 0.6% of GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $3,719,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in KO. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $410,000. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 24.7% during the fourth quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 450,523 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,549,000 after acquiring an additional 89,139 shares during the last quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $267,000 after purchasing an additional 507 shares in the last quarter. Smart Money Group LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. Smart Money Group LLC now owns 4,932 shares of the company’s stock valued at $291,000 after buying an additional 877 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 12,621 shares of the company’s stock valued at $744,000 after buying an additional 1,495 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE KO traded up $0.12 on Wednesday, hitting $68.58. The company had a trading volume of 14,307,243 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,067,596. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $51.55 and a 12-month high of $69.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $295.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.48, a PEG ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.59. The business has a 50 day moving average of $64.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.21.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.03. The firm 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 quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 80,891 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.34, for a total value of $5,042,744.94. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 218,880 shares in the company, valued at $13,644,979.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 19,304 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.44, for a total value of $1,224,645.76. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,168,055.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 80,891 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.34, for a total value 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 871,162 shares of company stock valued at $571,697,887 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Argus upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.20.

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.