CocaCola Company (The) $KO Shares Bought by J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG

Key Points

• J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG boosted its Coca-Cola stake by 27.8% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 72,787 shares valued at about $5.53 million.
• Analysts remain upbeat on KO, with several firms raising price targets and the stock carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and average target of $88.06.
• Coca-Cola reported solid fundamentals, posting quarterly EPS of $0.86 and revenue of $12.47 billion, both above estimates, while also paying a $0.53 quarterly dividend that equates to a 2.5% yield.

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG increased its stake in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 27.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 72,787 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 15,852 shares during the period. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG's holdings in CocaCola were worth $5,533,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of CocaCola by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 374,771,512 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,200,276,000 after purchasing an additional 5,886,352 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 167,850,330 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,734,417,000 after buying an additional 1,992,327 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in CocaCola by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 89,984,203 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,273,037,000 after buying an additional 433,547 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in CocaCola during the fourth quarter worth about $3,865,807,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in CocaCola by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 40,289,857 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,816,697,000 after acquiring an additional 1,195,581 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on KO. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $89.00 target price on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of CocaCola from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. UBS Group lifted their price target 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. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on CocaCola from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CocaCola presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $88.06.

CocaCola Stock Up 0.9%

KO stock opened at $84.25 on Tuesday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $80.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.32. CocaCola Company has a 52-week low of $65.35 and a 52-week high of $85.68. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $362.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.34.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $12.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.24 billion. CocaCola had a net margin of 27.80% and a return on equity of 40.55%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.73 EPS. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.240-3.270 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that CocaCola Company will post 3.26 EPS for the current year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. CocaCola's payout ratio is presently 66.67%.

CocaCola News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Coca-Cola declared its 64th consecutive annual dividend increase, reinforcing its status as a Dividend King and appealing to income-focused investors. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America and Evercore ISI were both reported as bullish on KO, with Bank of America seeing about 15% upside and Evercore reiterating a buy rating, which can support investor confidence. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts highlighted Coca-Cola as a low-beta defensive stock as geopolitical tensions and market volatility increase demand for stable, dividend-paying names. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage on Coca-Cola’s digital push suggests the company is using data, personalization, and connected packaging to improve consumer engagement and repeat purchases, which could help long-term growth. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Several comparison pieces versus PepsiCo, Johnson & Johnson, Keurig Dr Pepper, and Celsius kept KO in the spotlight as investors debate its valuation, yield, and defensive appeal, but these articles are mostly commentary rather than fresh company-specific catalysts.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 31,625 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 223,330 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,074,096.90. This represents a 12.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Chairman James Quincey sold 436,296 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.13, for a total value of $34,960,398.48. Following the sale, the chairman owned 122,833 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,842,608.29. The trade was a 78.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 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 ninety days, insiders sold 899,905 shares of company stock valued at $71,832,315. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

CocaCola 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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