Coca Cola Femsa S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:KOF) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest plunged 43.1% to 234,052 shares as of March 31, leaving a short-interest ratio of 1.2 days and showing 0.0% of shares short sold.
• Dividend raised: the quarterly payout was increased to $1.0873 (annualized $4.35) with an ex-dividend date of April 20 and a yield of 4.2%; the payout ratio is 64.6%.
• Analyst and financial snapshot: MarketBeat shows a "Moderate Buy" consensus with a $111.60 average target; the company reported $2.00 EPS and $4.31B revenue for the quarter and the stock trades at a P/E of 17.56.

Coca Cola Femsa S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:KOF - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 234,052 shares, a decline of 43.1% from the March 15th total of 411,142 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 191,389 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.2 days. Currently, 0.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Institutional Trading of Coca Cola Femsa

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KOF. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in Coca Cola Femsa by 482.5% during the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 332 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Coca Cola Femsa by 79.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 346 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Coca Cola Femsa during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Coca Cola Femsa by 490.7% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 508 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in Coca Cola Femsa in the 3rd quarter worth $49,000.

Coca Cola Femsa Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KOF traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $104.61. The stock had a trading volume of 42,391 shares, compared to its average volume of 206,233. Coca Cola Femsa has a 1 year low of $80.22 and a 1 year high of $116.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The business's 50 day moving average price is $104.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $95.68. The company has a market cap of $175.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.54.

Coca Cola Femsa (NYSE:KOF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, February 14th. The company reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Coca Cola Femsa had a return on equity of 15.97% and a net margin of 8.18%.The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter. Research analysts expect that Coca Cola Femsa will post 5.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca Cola Femsa Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.0873 per share. This is an increase from Coca Cola Femsa's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. This represents a $4.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 20th. Coca Cola Femsa's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on KOF shares. Bradesco Corretora upgraded Coca Cola Femsa to an "outperform" rating and set a $124.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Coca Cola Femsa from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $100.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Coca Cola Femsa from $97.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Bank of America reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Coca Cola Femsa in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Coca Cola Femsa in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $111.60.

Coca Cola Femsa Company Profile

Coca‑Cola FEMSA NYSE: KOF is a large multinational beverage bottler and distributor operating primarily in Mexico and across multiple markets in Latin America. As a principal franchise bottler for The Coca‑Cola Company, the firm is responsible for producing, packaging, marketing and distributing Coca‑Cola branded beverages and a wide range of nonalcoholic drinks to retail and foodservice customers throughout its territories.

The company's product portfolio includes carbonated soft drinks, bottled water, juices, ready‑to‑drink teas and coffees, sports and energy drinks, and other noncarbonated beverages.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.