Vontobel Holding Ltd. Sells 1,306,495 Shares of CocaCola Company (The) $KO

Key Points

• Vontobel Holding cut its Coca-Cola stake by 20.4% in the third quarter, selling 1.31 million shares but retaining 5.10 million shares worth approximately $439.1 million. Institutional investors still own 70.26% of KO.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $96.27, compared with the stock’s reported price of $93.72.
• Coca-Cola exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, while declaring a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, or $2.12 annually, representing an approximate 2.3% yield.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. reduced its position in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 20.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,101,020 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,306,495 shares during the quarter. CocaCola accounts for about 1.5% of Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Vontobel Holding Ltd. owned 0.12% of CocaCola worth $439,096,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Banco Santander S.A. raised its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 3.1% during the second quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 1,090,758 shares of the company's stock valued at $88,646,000 after purchasing an additional 32,723 shares during the last quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in CocaCola by 68.5% during the second quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 218,199 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,733,000 after purchasing an additional 88,690 shares during the period. CX Institutional boosted its holdings in CocaCola by 402.3% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 163,248 shares of the company's stock worth $14,052,000 after purchasing an additional 130,746 shares during the last quarter. Moore Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in CocaCola in the second quarter worth approximately $12,905,000. Finally, Cidel Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in CocaCola by 2,091.3% in the second quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 361,934 shares of the company's stock worth $29,414,000 after purchasing an additional 345,417 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on KO. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $95.00 target price (up from $88.00) on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Bank of America increased their price target on CocaCola from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Daiwa Securities Group raised their price target on CocaCola from $83.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $93.00 price objective (up from $83.00) on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on CocaCola from $95.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CocaCola presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $96.27.

CocaCola Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO traded up $1.72 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $93.72. The company had a trading volume of 23,066,385 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,267,122. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The company has a market cap of $403.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.14, a PEG ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.32. CocaCola Company has a 12-month low of $67.27 and a 12-month high of $94.10. The company has a fifty day moving average of $88.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $83.34.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $13.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.17 billion. CocaCola had a return on equity of 39.38% and a net margin of 28.56%. CocaCola's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.87 earnings per share. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.270-3.300 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that CocaCola Company will post 3.30 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio is currently 63.66%.

Key CocaCola News

Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: KFC switches from Pepsi to Coca-Cola: KFC will replace PepsiCo beverages with Coca-Cola products at its U.S. restaurants next year, ending a relationship that began in 1986. The high-profile contract should provide incremental fountain volume, strengthen Coca-Cola’s North American position and pressure PepsiCo. KFC to switch to Coca-Cola beverages in U.S. restaurants
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: UBS reaffirmed its Buy rating, while Jefferies maintained a Buy rating and Barclays reportedly raised its price target. Analysts view the KFC win as evidence of improving competitive momentum in North America. Jefferies maintains Coca-Cola Buy rating
• Positive Sentiment: Rotation into defensive stocks: Coca-Cola, Visa and Mastercard reached records as investors rotated away from chip and artificial-intelligence stocks. KO’s low-beta profile and dependable cash flows make it a potential beneficiary if technology-market volatility increases. Coca-Cola, Visa and Mastercard hit records
• Positive Sentiment: Strong brand and product execution: Coca-Cola Zero Sugar volume grew 16% in the second quarter, outpacing 5% growth for the broader Coca-Cola trademark. Localized pricing, marketing and product strategies are also supporting global consumer engagement. How Coca-Cola is using local execution to fuel global growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend remains a support: Coca-Cola declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, or $2.12 annualized, representing an indicated yield of about 2.3%. The payout reinforces KO’s income appeal, although the stock’s elevated valuation limits the margin of safety.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and growth questions: At roughly 28 times earnings, investors are paying a premium for a mature company. The Zero Sugar gains may partly reflect consumers switching among Coca-Cola products rather than creating entirely new demand, which could limit the long-term earnings benefit. Is Zero Sugar creating new demand or shifting existing sales?

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CocaCola news, insider Sanket Ray sold 9,958 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.50, for a total transaction of $861,367.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 62,105 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,372,082.50. This trade represents a 13.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO John Murphy sold 152,483 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.31, for a total transaction of $13,313,290.73. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 279,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,439,553.27. The trade was a 35.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 926,620 shares of company stock worth $83,075,714 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

CocaCola Profile

The Coca-Cola Company NYSE: KO is a global beverage company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Its portfolio includes sparkling soft drinks, water, sports drinks, coffee, tea, juice, dairy and plant-based beverages, and other ready-to-drink products. The company's best-known brands include Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Dasani, Powerade, Minute Maid, fairlife, and Georgia Coffee.

Founded in 1886, the company develops, owns, licenses, markets, and distributes beverage brands through a network of bottling partners, distributors, retailers, and food-service operators.

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