Wright Investors Service Inc. Acquires 4,601 Shares of CocaCola Company (The) $KO

Key Points

• Wright Investors Service Inc. increased its holdings in CocaCola by 5.1%, acquiring 94,701 shares valued at approximately $6.7 million, making it the firm’s 12th largest investment.
• Several other institutional investors have also boosted their stakes in CocaCola, collectively owning 70.26% of the company’s stock, indicating strong institutional interest.
• CocaCola reported earnings of $0.87 per share for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.51 per share, reflecting a 3.1% yield.

Wright Investors Service Inc. increased its position in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 5.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 94,701 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,601 shares during the quarter. CocaCola comprises about 2.0% of Wright Investors Service Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Wright Investors Service Inc.'s holdings in CocaCola were worth $6,700,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of KO. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of CocaCola by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 39,072 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,433,000 after acquiring an additional 4,591 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in CocaCola by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,795 shares of the company's stock valued at $548,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG raised its stake in CocaCola by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 19,102 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,189,000 after purchasing an additional 2,072 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its stake in CocaCola by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 48,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,988,000 after purchasing an additional 621 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Novem Group purchased a new stake in CocaCola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $533,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at CocaCola

In other news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 37,396 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.10, for a total transaction of $2,584,063.60. Following the sale, the insider owned 209,513 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,477,348.30. The trade was a 15.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of CocaCola from $84.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $81.00 target price on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $76.00 target price on shares of CocaCola and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. BNP Paribas reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $83.00 target price on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of CocaCola from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and fourteen have issued a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $76.93.

CocaCola Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE:KO traded down $0.09 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $66.13. The company had a trading volume of 5,712,523 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,935,979. The company has a market capitalization of $284.58 billion, a PE ratio of 23.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.43. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $68.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $70.18. CocaCola 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 1.49, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 0.98.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $12.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.55 billion. CocaCola had a net margin of 25.89% and a return on equity of 44.91%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.84 earnings per share. CocaCola has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.970-2.970 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. CocaCola's payout ratio is 72.34%.

About CocaCola

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.