CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych

Key Points

• Generali Investments has reduced its stake in Coca-Cola by 38.6%, selling nearly 12,000 shares and ending the quarter with 19,000 shares, valued at approximately $1.36 million.
• Coca-Cola's CFO and CEO have both sold significant amounts of company stock, with the CFO selling 88,658 shares and the CEO selling 266,403 shares in May, marking a substantial decrease in their ownership.
• Despite recent insider selling, Coca-Cola continues to receive favorable ratings from analysts, with a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $77.21.

Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych lessened its stake in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 38.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,000 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,933 shares during the period. Generali Investments Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych's holdings in CocaCola were worth $1,361,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KO. New Republic Capital LLC boosted its position in CocaCola by 1.6% during the first quarter. New Republic Capital LLC now owns 8,662 shares of the company's stock worth $625,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Alteri Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of CocaCola by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Alteri Wealth LLC now owns 6,874 shares of the company's stock worth $492,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its position in shares of CocaCola by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 20,099 shares of the company's stock worth $1,439,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. MBA Advisors LLC grew its stake in CocaCola by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. MBA Advisors LLC now owns 12,443 shares of the company's stock valued at $891,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BXM Wealth LLC raised its position in CocaCola by 4.3% during the first quarter. BXM Wealth LLC now owns 3,532 shares of the company's stock worth $253,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at CocaCola

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $19,197,000.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 275,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. This represents a 49.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of CocaCola stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.87, for a total transaction of $4,335,629.62. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 187,716 shares in the company, valued at $13,491,148.92. This trade represents a 24.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 415,387 shares of company stock worth $29,923,985. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on KO. Cfra Research upgraded CocaCola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of CocaCola from $86.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $76.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of CocaCola from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, BNP Paribas reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $83.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Monday, July 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CocaCola has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $77.21.

CocaCola Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:KO traded up $0.21 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $69.17. 3,611,167 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,140,041. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $70.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $69.73. The firm has a market cap of $297.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.44. CocaCola Company has a 12-month low of $60.62 and a 12-month high of $74.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.21.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.04. CocaCola had a net margin of 25.89% and a return on equity of 44.91%. The firm had revenue of $12.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.55 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.84 earnings per share. CocaCola's revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.34%.

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.