Sunbelt Securities Inc. Boosts Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 742.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 87,014 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 76,687 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc.'s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $5,397,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Hoey Investments Inc. lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.9% in the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares during the period. Finally, MilWealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $10,327,339.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,324,191.46. The trade was a 29.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 205,511 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,815,287.99. The trade was a 30.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 462,407 shares of company stock worth $32,990,056 over the last 90 days. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KO. DZ Bank raised shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $75.81.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KO traded up $0.67 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $71.81. The company had a trading volume of 12,819,315 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,731,409. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $71.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.00. The stock has a market cap of $309.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.07, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1 year low of $60.62 and a 1 year high of $74.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 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 analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.02. The business 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 business's quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.72 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.84%. Coca-Cola's payout ratio is currently 81.60%.

Coca-Cola 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.