The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Martin Capital Partners LLC

Martin Capital Partners LLC reduced its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 90.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,130 shares of the company's stock after selling 28,593 shares during the period. Martin Capital Partners LLC's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $224,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. REAP Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 57.5% during the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 570 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. raised its position in Coca-Cola by 41.9% in the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KO traded down $1.30 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $70.94. The stock had a trading volume of 17,424,785 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,829,020. 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 firm has a market cap of $305.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $71.50 and a 200-day moving average of $67.80. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $60.62 and a fifty-two week high of $74.38.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 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 firm had revenue of $11.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.72 EPS. The firm's revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.88%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $19,197,000.18. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 275,946 shares in the company, valued at $19,884,668.76. The trade was a 49.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, 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 now owns 205,511 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,815,287.99. The trade was a 30.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 415,387 shares of company stock valued at $29,923,985. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on KO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $81.00 price objective on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $76.00.

About Coca-Cola

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.