Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Takes $202.02 Million Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 3,244,730 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $202,017,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned 0.08% of Coca-Cola at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peachtree Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Peachtree Investment Partners LLC now owns 11,189 shares of the company's stock worth $697,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC now owns 4,993 shares of the company's stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Excalibur Management Corp lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Excalibur Management Corp now owns 29,412 shares of the company's stock worth $1,831,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,737 shares of the company's stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 39,198 shares of the company's stock worth $2,440,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on KO shares. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Barclays restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.81.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

KO stock traded down $0.64 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $71.14. 8,697,446 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,683,227. The stock has a market capitalization of $306.21 billion, a PE ratio of 28.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52 week low of $60.62 and a 52 week high of $74.38. 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 has a fifty day moving average price of $71.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.11.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 previous year, the company posted $0.72 EPS. The business's revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given 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 2.87%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 55,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $3,941,055.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,533,008.09. The trade was a 18.35% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $13,491,148.92. This represents a 24.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 229,761 shares of company stock worth $16,474,587. Insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

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.