Simplicity Wealth LLC Grows Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Simplicity Wealth LLC raised its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 723.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 46,130 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 40,530 shares during the period. Simplicity Wealth LLC's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $3,304,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth about $3,402,151,000. Capital International Investors raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 96.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 24,949,194 shares of the company's stock worth $1,553,337,000 after acquiring an additional 12,222,885 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 74,163,187 shares of the company's stock worth $4,617,400,000 after purchasing an additional 11,569,920 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $500,192,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Coca-Cola 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 purchasing an additional 6,118,819 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective 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. boosted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective 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. Cfra Research raised Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two investment 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's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $76.00.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the firm'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 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 205,511 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,815,287.99. This represents a 30.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 415,387 shares of company stock worth $29,923,985 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of KO stock traded up $0.59 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $72.36. 12,260,422 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,791,949. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company's 50 day moving average is $71.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $67.68. The company has a market cap of $311.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1 year low of $60.62 and a 1 year high of $74.38.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced 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. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. The firm had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.72 earnings per share. Coca-Cola's quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio is presently 81.60%.

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.