CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Lafayette Investments Inc.

Lafayette Investments Inc. reduced its stake in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) by 0.7% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 64,634 shares of the company’s stock after selling 425 shares during the quarter. CocaCola accounts for 1.0% of Lafayette Investments Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Lafayette Investments Inc.’s holdings in CocaCola were worth $4,629,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in CocaCola in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new position in CocaCola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in CocaCola by 360.0% in the 1st quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 460 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC increased its position in CocaCola by 57.5% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CocaCola Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of CocaCola stock opened at $69.51 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. CocaCola Company has a 12-month low of $60.62 and a 12-month high of $74.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $299.20 billion, a PE ratio of 27.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.46. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $71.31 and its 200-day moving average is $68.23.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.02. CocaCola had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 45.49%. The firm had revenue of $11.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.72 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

CocaCola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.93%. CocaCola’s dividend payout ratio is 81.60%.

Insider Activity at CocaCola

In other CocaCola news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total value of $6,391,355.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 205,511 shares in the company, valued at $14,815,287.99. This represents a 30.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of CocaCola stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $19,197,000.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 275,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,884,668.76. This trade represents a 49.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 415,387 shares of company stock valued at $29,923,985. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on KO shares. UBS Group boosted their price target on CocaCola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on CocaCola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Cfra Research raised CocaCola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CocaCola has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $76.27.

About CocaCola

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.