Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC Sells 76,981 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC decreased its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 47.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 84,106 shares of the company's stock after selling 76,981 shares during the period. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $6,024,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Coca-Cola Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NYSE KO traded down $1.30 on Friday, reaching $70.94. 17,424,785 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,829,018. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $60.62 and a 12 month high of $74.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The company has a market cap of $305.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $71.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $67.80.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $11.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.72 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors 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 yield of 2.88%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.60%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.87, for a total value of $4,335,629.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 187,716 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,491,148.92. This trade represents a 24.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total value of $6,391,355.22. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 205,511 shares in the company, valued at $14,815,287.99. The trade was a 30.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 415,387 shares of company stock worth $29,923,985. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on KO shares. UBS Group increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $81.00 target price on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Monday. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $76.00.

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.