CocaCola Company (The) $KO Shares Bought by Cerity Partners LLC

Key Points

• Cerity Partners LLC increased its Coca-Cola stake by 8.6% in the fourth quarter, adding 88,823 shares and bringing its total holdings to 1,122,341 shares worth about $78.5 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains upbeat: several firms raised price targets, and Coca-Cola now has an average analyst rating of Buy with an average target price of $86.80.
• Coca-Cola reported solid quarterly results, topping EPS and revenue expectations, and also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, implying a 2.6% yield.

Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 8.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,122,341 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 88,823 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in CocaCola were worth $78,468,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 5,930,442 shares of the company's stock worth $414,597,000 after buying an additional 160,883 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 40,289,857 shares of the company's stock worth $2,816,697,000 after buying an additional 1,195,581 shares during the last quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 93.3% during the 4th quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 536,582 shares of the company's stock worth $37,602,000 after buying an additional 259,024 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 760,031 shares of the company's stock worth $53,134,000 after buying an additional 67,550 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $215,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $88.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of CocaCola from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, CocaCola presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $86.80.

CocaCola Stock Up 2.2%

KO stock opened at $81.30 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $78.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.48. CocaCola Company has a 12 month low of $65.35 and a 12 month high of $82.66. The company has a market cap of $349.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.15.

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

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio is 66.67%.

Insider Activity at CocaCola

In other CocaCola news, Chairman James Quincey sold 436,296 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.13, for a total transaction of $34,960,398.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 122,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,842,608.29. This represents a 78.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 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. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 31,625 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.93, for a total transaction of $2,559,411.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 223,330 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,074,096.90. The trade was a 12.40% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 775,921 shares of company stock worth $61,885,810 in the last 90 days. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Trending Headlines about CocaCola

Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America highlighted Coca-Cola as a key stock to watch as the 2026 World Cup begins, saying beverage volumes could surge during the tournament and benefit KO. The World Cup Is Here: Analyst Names One Beverage Stock To Watch
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage also pointed to Coca-Cola’s strong pricing power and volume growth, with Q1 results showing 10% organic revenue growth and 3% volume gains, reinforcing the company’s ability to offset inflation. Coca-Cola's Inflation Balancing Act: Price Increases vs. Volume
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple articles emphasized KO’s dividend appeal, calling it a Dividend King with decades of consecutive dividend increases, which can attract income-focused investors. 1 Plain-As-Day Dividend King to Buy and Never Sell That Has Increased Its Payout for 64 Consecutive Years
• Positive Sentiment: News that Coca-Cola is launching BodyArmor Fit supports its expansion into the “better-for-you” beverage category, broadening growth opportunities beyond traditional soda. Coca-Cola launches BodyArmor Fit as it branches out in the 'better-for-you' category
• Neutral Sentiment: Chairman James Quincey and EVP Jennifer K. Mann disclosed stock sales, but both were pre-planned 10b5-1 transactions tied to tax withholding on equity awards, making them less concerning than open-market insider selling.

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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