Orion Investment Co Raises Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Orion Investment Co lifted its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 19.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 6,083 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Orion Investment Co’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $379,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. lifted its position in Coca-Cola by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other news, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total transaction of $1,806,547.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 52,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,749,745.02. The trade was a 32.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $961,317.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,769,334. The trade was a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Two equities research 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 2.6 %

Coca-Cola stock opened at $73.18 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $68.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.47. The stock has a market cap of $314.91 billion, a PE ratio of 29.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $57.93 and a 1-year high of $73.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

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

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.79%. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is 82.59%.

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.