The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Bought by Apella Capital LLC

Apella Capital LLC raised its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 64.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,709 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,909 shares during the quarter. Apella Capital LLC's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,239,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. REAP Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 57.5% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 570 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.9% during the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of KO stock traded up $0.46 during trading on Friday, reaching $71.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 9,519,460 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,766,583. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $60.62 and a 1-year high of $74.38. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $71.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.51. The company has a market capitalization of $307.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.89, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

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

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.86%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.60%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 275,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. This represents a 49.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.87, for a total value of $4,335,629.62. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 187,716 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,491,148.92. The trade was a 24.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 440,664 shares of company stock worth $31,730,532 in the last quarter. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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. Finally, Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $75.81.

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.