Howland Capital Management LLC Sells 13,209 Shares of CocaCola Company (The) $KO

Key Points

• Howland Capital Management reduced its Coca-Cola stake by 14.6% in the third quarter, selling 13,209 shares and retaining 77,555 shares valued at approximately $6.7 million.
• Coca-Cola shares were trading near a 52-week high at $95.32, while analysts maintained a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $96.27. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, equivalent to a 2.2% annual yield.
• Investors are focused on Coca-Cola’s upcoming third-quarter earnings, expected to show sales above $12.9 billion, but the stock’s premium valuation and potential operational, volume and data-breach-related risks could limit upside.

Howland Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 14.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 77,555 shares of the company's stock after selling 13,209 shares during the quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC's holdings in CocaCola were worth $6,717,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of KO. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its holdings in CocaCola by 23.2% in the 3rd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 113,340 shares of the company's stock worth $9,756,000 after buying an additional 21,377 shares in the last quarter. Ledyard National Bank increased its position in shares of CocaCola by 6.5% during the third quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 44,400 shares of the company's stock worth $3,822,000 after acquiring an additional 2,700 shares during the last quarter. NBT Bank N.A. purchased a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the third quarter worth about $7,446,000. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its position in shares of CocaCola by 2.7% during the third quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 11,680 shares of the company's stock worth $1,005,000 after acquiring an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Carter Financial Group INC. lifted its stake in shares of CocaCola by 36.9% in the third quarter. Carter Financial Group INC. now owns 4,413 shares of the company's stock worth $381,000 after acquiring an additional 1,190 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key CocaCola News

Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Defensive-sector rotation: Investors moved toward reliable, dividend-paying consumer and healthcare companies as broader large-cap stocks weakened, benefiting Coca-Cola’s safe-haven profile. Defensive consumer stocks article
• Positive Sentiment: Encouraging earnings setup: Coca-Cola reports third-quarter results before the market opens on October 27. Analysts are looking for more than $12.9 billion in sales, while the company enters the report after six consecutive EPS beats and previously raised its 2026 organic-revenue and earnings-growth outlook. Coca-Cola third-quarter earnings preview
• Positive Sentiment: KFC distribution win: KFC plans to return Coca-Cola beverages to roughly 3,600 U.S. restaurants beginning in early 2027, replacing PepsiCo products. The agreement could provide incremental fountain-volume growth and reinforce Coca-Cola’s commercial momentum. Coca-Cola KFC agreement article
• Positive Sentiment: Marketing investment: Coca-Cola selected agency partners as part of a global marketing review focused on data, technology and artificial intelligence, while retaining WPP Open X as its global media partner in most markets. Management expects the effort to strengthen consumer connections and support long-term growth. Coca-Cola marketing agency announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation limits upside: After a roughly 30%-plus annual gain, Coca-Cola trades at about 28 times earnings. Investors increasingly need evidence that pricing power, volume growth and margins can justify the premium.
• Negative Sentiment: Operational and legal risks: Pre-earnings analysis points to weak volumes in some key markets, while a law firm is investigating potential class-action claims related to a reported data breach. These issues could pressure results or create reputational and financial costs. Coca-Cola data breach investigation

Analyst Ratings Changes

KO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. HSBC increased their price target on CocaCola from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $86.00 target price (up from $82.00) on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of CocaCola from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Barclays lifted their price target on CocaCola from $93.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 16th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price objective on CocaCola from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $96.27.

CocaCola Stock Up 2.8%

NYSE:KO opened at $95.32 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $410.12 billion, a PE ratio of 28.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.32. CocaCola Company has a 52 week low of $67.27 and a 52 week high of $95.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $89.01 and a 200-day moving average of $83.88.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.04. CocaCola had a return on equity of 39.38% and a net margin of 28.56%. The business had revenue of $13.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.270-3.300 EPS. Analysts predict that CocaCola Company will post 3.30 EPS for the current year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio is currently 63.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling at CocaCola

In related news, CFO John Murphy sold 152,483 shares of CocaCola stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.31, for a total value of $13,313,290.73. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 279,917 shares in the company, valued at $24,439,553.27. This trade represents a 35.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 111,365 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.93, for a total transaction of $10,126,419.45. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 41,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,761,319.45. The trade was a 72.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 926,620 shares of company stock valued at $83,075,714. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

CocaCola Profile

The Coca-Cola Company NYSE: KO is a global beverage company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1886, it is best known for Coca-Cola, one of the world's most recognized soft drink brands.

The company owns, licenses, and markets a broad portfolio of beverages, including sparkling soft drinks, water, sports drinks, coffee, tea, juice, dairy and plant-based beverages, and energy drinks. Its brands include Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Dasani, smartwater, Powerade, Minute Maid, Simply, fairlife, and Costa Coffee, among others.

The Coca-Cola Company serves consumers in more than 200 countries and territories through a system that includes company-operated operations, independent bottling partners, distributors, retailers, and food-service providers.

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