Douglas Lane & Associates LLC Has $74.12 Million Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Douglas Lane & Associates LLC lifted its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 0.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,034,913 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,901 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola accounts for 1.1% of Douglas Lane & Associates LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $74,120,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 74,163,187 shares of the company's stock worth $4,617,400,000 after acquiring an additional 11,569,920 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $3,402,151,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 9.5% during 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 in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 21.9% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 96.0% during 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 in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total value of $6,391,355.22. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total value of $1,806,547.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 52,466 shares in the company, valued at $3,749,745.02. The trade was a 32.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 229,761 shares of company stock valued at $16,474,587. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Coca-Cola Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of KO traded down $0.13 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $71.98. 10,196,133 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,726,095. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $60.62 and a 1-year high of $74.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $309.80 billion, a PE ratio of 29.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a fifty day moving average of $71.35 and a 200-day moving average of $67.32.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. The business had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. DZ Bank upgraded Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Cfra Research upgraded Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $75.81.

Coca-Cola 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.