Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Lowers Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. decreased its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 73.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 639,390 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,771,614 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $45,947,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 21.5% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 49,297,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,016,023,000 after acquiring an additional 8,733,326 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 30.5% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 12,698,984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $776,924,000 after buying an additional 2,964,850 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the second quarter worth approximately $188,448,000. M&G Plc purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth $157,087,000. Finally, Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 42.6% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 6,245,331 shares of the company’s stock valued at $397,515,000 after acquiring an additional 1,866,348 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Five 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.87.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 38,653 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.01, for a total value of $2,667,443.53. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $7,179,360.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $30,987,070.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 38,653 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.01, for a total transaction of $2,667,443.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 319,005 shares of company stock worth $22,198,147. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $67.30 on Friday. 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 52-week low of $55.10 and a 52-week high of $73.53. The stock has a market cap of $289.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.92, a PEG ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.60. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $70.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $65.96.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $11.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.61 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.92% and a return on equity of 43.62%. Coca-Cola’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.74 EPS. Equities analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.60%.

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.