Verus Financial Partners Inc. Lowers Stock Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Verus Financial Partners Inc. cut its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,993 shares of the company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Verus Financial Partners Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $286,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. New Millennium Group LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the second quarter worth about $27,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $1,321,606.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $15,968,095. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $1,321,606.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $15,968,095. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 40,334 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.54, for a total transaction of $2,804,826.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,067 shares in the company, valued at $5,150,619.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 203,748 shares of company stock valued at $14,274,431. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Coca-Cola stock opened at $63.96 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The firm has a market cap of $275.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.43, a PEG ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $56.06 and a twelve month high of $73.53. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $69.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.44.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. The company’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.74 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 80.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on KO. Barclays reduced their target price on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Royal Bank of Canada raised 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. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.80.

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.