Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 507,956 Shares of CocaCola Company (The) $KO

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group reduced its Coca-Cola stake by 5.1% in Q1, selling 507,956 shares and leaving it with 9.51 million shares valued at about $723.3 million.
• Coca-Cola reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $0.86 beating estimates and revenue of $12.47 billion also topping forecasts; revenue rose 11.4% year over year.
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, equal to $2.12 annually and a yield of 2.5%, while analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. cut its position in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 5.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,511,059 shares of the company's stock after selling 507,956 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.22% of CocaCola worth $723,316,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 0.5% in the first quarter. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC now owns 26,844 shares of the company's stock worth $2,041,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Vestia Personal Wealth Advisors raised its position in shares of CocaCola by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Vestia Personal Wealth Advisors now owns 3,819 shares of the company's stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Alteri Wealth LLC boosted its stake in CocaCola by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Alteri Wealth LLC now owns 7,738 shares of the company's stock valued at $541,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the period. Apexium Financial LP boosted its stake in CocaCola by 1.2% during the third quarter. Apexium Financial LP now owns 12,154 shares of the company's stock valued at $810,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, Lbmc Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in CocaCola by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Lbmc Investment Advisors LLC now owns 38,886 shares of the company's stock worth $2,718,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key CocaCola News

Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Several articles highlight Coca-Cola as a defensive, market-weary investor favorite, with its steady business model and consistent earnings beats supporting the stock’s premium valuation. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and commentators continue to point to Coca-Cola’s strong year-to-date performance and relative outperformance versus many consumer staples peers, reinforcing momentum in the stock. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Pepsi’s upcoming earnings are being framed as a comparison point for the beverage sector, but this is more of a read-through for competitor performance than a direct Coca-Cola catalyst. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage noting a pullback in KO shares says the stock’s defensive appeal remains in focus, suggesting recent weakness may be seen as a buying opportunity rather than a fundamental problem. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Walmart’s price cuts on Coca-Cola packs raise questions about pricing power and valuation, but the article notes the stock has still shown strong momentum recently, making this a watch item ahead of earnings. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: A downgrade on Coca-Cola reflects some concern that the stock may have run too far, and another report says KO has underperformed competitors on a recent trading day, which may weigh on sentiment. Article Title

CocaCola Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE KO opened at $83.47 on Thursday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $80.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $77.04. CocaCola Company has a twelve month low of $65.35 and a twelve month high of $85.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market capitalization of $359.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.25, a PEG ratio of 3.36 and a beta of 0.34.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $12.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.24 billion. CocaCola had a return on equity of 40.55% and a net margin of 27.80%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.73 EPS. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.240-3.270 EPS. Research analysts forecast that CocaCola Company will post 3.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. CocaCola's payout ratio is presently 66.67%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman James Quincey sold 436,296 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.13, for a total value of $34,960,398.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 122,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,842,608.29. The trade was a 78.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 31,625 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.93, for a total transaction of $2,559,411.25. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 223,330 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,074,096.90. This trade represents a 12.40% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 899,905 shares of company stock valued at $71,832,315 over the last quarter. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on KO. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on CocaCola from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Weiss Ratings raised CocaCola from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Truist Financial set a $88.00 target price on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of CocaCola from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CocaCola has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $86.88.

CocaCola Profile

The Coca‑Cola Company NYSE: KO is a global beverage manufacturer, marketer and distributor best known for its flagship Coca‑Cola soda. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company develops and sells concentrates, syrups and finished beverages across a broad portfolio of brands. Its product range spans sparkling soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready‑to‑drink teas and coffees, and other still beverages, marketed under both global and regional brand names.

Coca‑Cola’s brand portfolio includes widely recognized names such as Coca‑Cola, Diet Coke, Coca‑Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade and Dasani, and in recent years the company has expanded into the coffee and premium beverage categories through acquisitions such as Costa Coffee.

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