SBI Securities Co. Ltd. Cuts Stock Holdings in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO)

SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 3.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 304,799 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,692 shares during the quarter. CocaCola accounts for about 0.7% of SBI Securities Co. Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. SBI Securities Co. Ltd.'s holdings in CocaCola were worth $21,830,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of KO. Norges Bank acquired a new position in CocaCola in the fourth quarter valued at $3,402,151,000. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in CocaCola by 96.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 24,949,194 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,553,337,000 after acquiring an additional 12,222,885 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in CocaCola by 21.9% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,103,772 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,123,301,000 after acquiring an additional 6,118,819 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in CocaCola by 8,419.4% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,961,004 shares of the company's stock valued at $426,927,000 after acquiring an additional 5,891,034 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in CocaCola by 119.0% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 9,458,248 shares of the company's stock valued at $588,871,000 after acquiring an additional 5,139,352 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KO shares. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of CocaCola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $81.00 target price on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Monday, June 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of CocaCola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of CocaCola 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, fourteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CocaCola has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $76.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 205,511 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,815,287.99. This trade represents a 30.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of CocaCola stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 275,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. This trade represents a 49.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 415,387 shares of company stock worth $29,923,985. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

CocaCola Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of KO opened at $69.89 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $70.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $68.90. CocaCola Company has a 1-year low of $60.62 and a 1-year high of $74.38. The stock has a market cap of $300.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 0.45.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.02. CocaCola had a net margin of 23.00% and a return on equity of 45.49%. The business had revenue of $11.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.23 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.72 EPS. The company's revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.92%. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.60%.

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.

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