CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Westpac Banking Corp

Key Points

• Westpac Banking Corp has reduced its stake in CocaCola by 56.5%, owning 88,192 shares after selling 114,665 shares during the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors have increased their positions in CocaCola, with Mizuho Securities growing its holdings by 360% during the same quarter.
• CocaCola declared a $0.51 quarterly dividend, indicating an annualized dividend of $2.04 and a yield of 2.9%, to be paid on October 1st.

Westpac Banking Corp decreased its holdings in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 56.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 88,192 shares of the company's stock after selling 114,665 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp's holdings in CocaCola were worth $6,316,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. New Republic Capital LLC boosted its position in CocaCola by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. New Republic Capital LLC now owns 8,662 shares of the company's stock valued at $625,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. Alteri Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Alteri Wealth LLC now owns 6,874 shares of the company's stock worth $492,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 20,099 shares of the company's stock worth $1,439,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. MBA Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. MBA Advisors LLC now owns 12,443 shares of the company's stock worth $891,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BXM Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of CocaCola by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. BXM Wealth LLC now owns 3,532 shares of the company's stock worth $253,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

CocaCola Stock Down 0.4%

NYSE:KO traded down $0.25 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $70.46. 10,352,569 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 14,447,787. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.02. CocaCola Company has a fifty-two week low of $60.62 and a fifty-two week high of $74.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The company has a market capitalization of $303.24 billion, a PE ratio of 24.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.44.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $12.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.55 billion. CocaCola had a net margin of 25.89% and a return on equity of 44.91%. CocaCola's quarterly revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.84 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. CocaCola's payout ratio is currently 72.34%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on KO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $81.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Monday, June 9th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $86.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. BNP Paribas reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $83.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $76.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $77.21.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CocaCola news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 37,396 shares of CocaCola stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total value of $2,584,063.60. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 209,513 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,477,348.30. The trade was a 15.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of CocaCola stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $19,197,000.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 275,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. This represents a 49.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

CocaCola Company 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.