AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Increases Stock Position in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 1,224.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,425,075 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,317,468 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd's holdings in CocaCola were worth $102,064,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Norges Bank purchased a new position in CocaCola in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,402,151,000. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 96.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 24,949,194 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,553,337,000 after purchasing an additional 12,222,885 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 21.9% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,103,772 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,123,301,000 after purchasing an additional 6,118,819 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 8,419.4% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,961,004 shares of the company's stock valued at $426,927,000 after purchasing an additional 5,891,034 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 119.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 9,458,248 shares of the company's stock valued at $588,871,000 after purchasing an additional 5,139,352 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

CocaCola Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO traded down $0.71 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $69.88. The stock had a trading volume of 14,904,122 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,421,020. The company has a market capitalization of $300.78 billion, a PE ratio of 27.95, a P/E/G ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $70.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. CocaCola Company has a 1 year low of $60.62 and a 1 year high of $74.38.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last released 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. The firm had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.23 billion. CocaCola had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 45.49%. The firm's revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. CocaCola's payout ratio is currently 81.60%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total transaction of $6,391,355.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 205,511 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,815,287.99. This represents a 30.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.87, for a total transaction of $4,335,629.62. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 187,716 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,491,148.92. This trade represents a 24.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 415,387 shares of company stock valued at $29,923,985 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $81.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of CocaCola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Cfra Research upgraded shares of CocaCola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CocaCola presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $76.71.

CocaCola 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.