Banco Santander S.A. Grows Holdings in CocaCola Company (The) $KO

Key Points

• Banco Santander boosted its Coca-Cola stake by 24.2% in the fourth quarter, ending with 728,435 shares worth about $50.9 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains constructive, with multiple analysts raising price targets and Coca-Cola holding a Moderate Buy consensus rating and an average target price of $86.69.
• Coca-Cola posted better-than-expected Q1 results, including EPS of $0.86 on revenue of $12.47 billion, and also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share.

Banco Santander S.A. increased its position in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 24.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 728,435 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 142,095 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in CocaCola were worth $50,925,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Eurizon SLJ Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the fourth quarter worth $552,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 38.1% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 111,598 shares of the company's stock worth $7,802,000 after purchasing an additional 30,786 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 82.3% during the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 49,700 shares of the company's stock worth $3,296,000 after purchasing an additional 22,444 shares during the last quarter. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 16.4% during the third quarter. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC now owns 710,000 shares of the company's stock worth $47,087,000 after purchasing an additional 100,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, King Luther Capital Management Corp lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 3,852,525 shares of the company's stock worth $269,330,000 after purchasing an additional 31,694 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on CocaCola from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on CocaCola from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Citigroup lifted their target price on CocaCola from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on CocaCola from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on CocaCola in a research note on Thursday. They set a "market perform" rating and a $84.00 price target on the stock. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $86.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at CocaCola

In other CocaCola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 31,625 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.93, for a total value of $2,559,411.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 223,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,074,096.90. This trade represents a 12.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, EVP Jennifer K. Mann sold 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.46, for a total transaction of $7,946,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 207,400 shares in the company, valued at $16,480,004. The trade was a 32.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 899,905 shares of company stock worth $71,832,315. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting CocaCola

Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: RBC Capital reiterated its buy view on Coca-Cola, reinforcing Wall Street’s generally favorable stance on KO and supporting the stock’s recent strength.
• Positive Sentiment: Several reports highlighted Coca-Cola as a potential beneficiary of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with expectations that beverage volume and consumer spending could rise during the tournament.
• Positive Sentiment: Market commentary also pointed to strong Q1 results, including an earnings and revenue beat, solid organic growth, and volume gains, which continue to underpin the bullish investment case. Coca-Cola’s Q1 Results Prove It's a Good Buy to Hold and Hold
• Positive Sentiment: Investor interest remains supported by Coca-Cola’s reliable dividend and defensive profile, which continue to attract income-focused buyers.
• Neutral Sentiment: EVP Jennifer K. Mann disclosed a stock sale, but it was conducted under a pre-arranged 10b5-1 plan and tied to equity-award tax withholding, making it less of a concern than discretionary insider selling.

CocaCola Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of KO stock opened at $82.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The company has a market cap of $355.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.98, a PEG ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.35. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $78.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.68. CocaCola Company has a 1-year low of $65.35 and a 1-year high of $84.04.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.05. CocaCola had a return on equity of 40.55% and a net margin of 27.80%.The business had revenue of $12.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.24 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.73 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.240-3.270 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that CocaCola Company will post 3.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.67%.

CocaCola Company Profile

The Coca‑Cola Company NYSE: KO is a global beverage manufacturer, marketer and distributor best known for its flagship Coca‑Cola soda. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company develops and sells concentrates, syrups and finished beverages across a broad portfolio of brands. Its product range spans sparkling soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready‑to‑drink teas and coffees, and other still beverages, marketed under both global and regional brand names.

Coca‑Cola’s brand portfolio includes widely recognized names such as Coca‑Cola, Diet Coke, Coca‑Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade and Dasani, and in recent years the company has expanded into the coffee and premium beverage categories through acquisitions such as Costa Coffee.

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