Conning Inc. Cuts Stake in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO)

Conning Inc. decreased its stake in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 15.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 514,967 shares of the company's stock after selling 96,632 shares during the quarter. CocaCola comprises 1.3% of Conning Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Conning Inc.'s holdings in CocaCola were worth $36,882,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in CocaCola during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,402,151,000. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of CocaCola by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,802,296 shares of the company's stock worth $2,727,131,000 after acquiring an additional 3,811,756 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of CocaCola by 21.9% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,103,772 shares of the company's stock worth $2,123,301,000 after acquiring an additional 6,118,819 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its stake in shares of CocaCola by 96.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 24,949,194 shares of the company's stock worth $1,553,337,000 after acquiring an additional 12,222,885 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of CocaCola by 18.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 24,566,933 shares of the company's stock worth $1,529,537,000 after acquiring an additional 3,791,300 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 205,511 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,815,287.99. This trade represents a 30.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $19,197,000.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 275,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. The trade was a 49.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 415,387 shares of company stock worth $29,923,985. Insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Cfra Research upgraded shares of CocaCola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of CocaCola in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of CocaCola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $81.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of CocaCola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, CocaCola presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $76.27.

CocaCola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO traded up $0.28 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $71.19. The company's stock had a trading volume of 9,440,457 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,160,583. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $71.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company has a market cap of $306.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.45. CocaCola Company has a 12-month low of $60.62 and a 12-month high of $74.38.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company's revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. CocaCola's payout ratio is currently 81.60%.

About CocaCola

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.