The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Purchased by NewEdge Wealth LLC

NewEdge Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 10.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 272,029 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,588 shares during the quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $16,937,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 13.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 92,961,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,680,205,000 after acquiring an additional 11,206,995 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 4,013,996 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the third quarter valued at approximately $269,382,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 92,957,028 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,664,005,000 after purchasing an additional 2,966,964 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 7,006.8% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,478,487 shares of the company’s stock worth $178,104,000 after purchasing an additional 2,443,612 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

KO stock opened at $70.80 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $304.53 billion, a PE ratio of 28.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $64.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.47. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $57.93 and a 12-month high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. As a group, research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total value of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. DZ Bank raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $73.82.

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.