CocaCola Company (The) $KO Shares Sold by MetLife Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• MetLife Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in CocaCola by 1.9%, holding a total of 1,102,701 shares worth approximately $78.98 million.
• CocaCola announced a quarterly dividend of $0.51 per share, with a 2.9% yield, scheduled to be paid on October 1st.
• The company's earnings per share for the recent quarter was $0.87, beating estimates, while revenue grew 2.5% year over year to reach $12.50 billion.

MetLife Investment Management LLC cut its stake in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 1.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,102,701 shares of the company's stock after selling 21,663 shares during the quarter. CocaCola makes up approximately 0.4% of MetLife Investment Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. MetLife Investment Management LLC's holdings in CocaCola were worth $78,975,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of CocaCola during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of CocaCola during the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 360.0% in the 1st quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 460 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. Ridgewood Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 148.4% in the 1st quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 477 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the period. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 57.5% in 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 during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KO. BNP Paribas reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $83.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $81.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Monday, June 9th. 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 research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $76.00 price target on shares of CocaCola and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of CocaCola from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $77.21.

Insider Activity at CocaCola

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $19,197,000.18. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 275,946 shares in the company, valued at $19,884,668.76. This represents a 49.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 37,396 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total value of $2,584,063.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 209,513 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,477,348.30. This represents a 15.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

CocaCola Stock Performance

Shares of CocaCola stock traded down $0.12 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $68.81. The company had a trading volume of 17,947,439 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,743,540. The stock has a market cap of $296.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.40, a PEG ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.47. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $12.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.55 billion. CocaCola had a net margin of 25.89% and a return on equity of 44.91%. CocaCola's revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.84 EPS. CocaCola has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.970-2.970 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.34%.

CocaCola Company 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.