The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Stake Lifted by Marshall Wace LLP

Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 93.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 2,571,259 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,240,720 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $160,087,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of KO. Rice Partnership LLC boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,397,000 after buying an additional 6,793 shares in the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 87.7% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 18,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,132,000 after buying an additional 8,499 shares in the last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,582,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its position 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 acquiring an additional 132,701 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 893,192 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,610,000 after acquiring an additional 8,810 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of KO opened at $71.89 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $57.93 and a one year high of $73.95. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $69.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.36. The company has a market capitalization of $309.37 billion, a PE ratio of 29.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly 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%. As a group, analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.84%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 246,909 shares in the company, 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 have sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on KO. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.