8,562 Shares in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Purchased by Novem Group

Novem Group acquired a new stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 8,562 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $533,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Hoey Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MilWealth Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total value of $3,882,079.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total value of $1,344,732.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 462,407 shares of company stock worth $32,990,056. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. DZ Bank raised Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $75.81.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

NYSE KO traded up $0.67 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $71.81. 12,819,315 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,731,409. The company has a market cap of $309.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $60.62 and a 12-month high of $74.38. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $71.09 and a 200 day moving average of $67.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $11.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.23 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.72 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.84%. Coca-Cola's payout ratio is currently 81.60%.

Coca-Cola 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.