Excalibur Management Corp Increases Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Excalibur Management Corp boosted its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,412 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. Excalibur Management Corp’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,831,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Rice Partnership LLC grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,397,000 after buying an additional 6,793 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC grew its position in Coca-Cola by 87.7% in the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 18,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,132,000 after acquiring an additional 8,499 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 14.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,615,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,271,885,000 after acquiring an additional 4,013,996 shares during the last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $1,582,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 222.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 192,237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,814,000 after buying an additional 132,701 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $68.85 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.40. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. The company has a market capitalization of $296.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. Analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total transaction of $10,327,339.35. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total transaction of $3,882,079.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. TD Cowen raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 target price on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.24.

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.