Zions Bancorporation National Association UT Makes New Investment in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO)

Key Points

• Zions Bancorporation invested $6.28 million in CocaCola, acquiring 87,711 shares as part of its new stake during the first quarter.
• Institutional investors now own 70.26% of CocaCola's stock, with recent significant increases in holdings from various firms including Capital International Investors and GAMMA Investing LLC.
• CocaCola announced a quarterly dividend of $0.51 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 2.9%, set to be paid on October 1st.

Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 87,711 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,282,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 360.0% during the 1st quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 460 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC boosted its stake in CocaCola by 148.4% in the 1st quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 477 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in CocaCola by 57.5% in the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 570 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

CocaCola Price Performance

Shares of KO traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $70.32. 9,229,863 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 14,864,419. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $70.13 and a 200-day moving average of $69.89. CocaCola Company has a 52 week low of $60.62 and a 52 week high of $74.38. The stock has a market cap of $302.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.94, a PEG ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.21.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.04. CocaCola had a net margin of 25.89% and a return on equity of 44.91%. The business had revenue of $12.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.55 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.84 EPS. The business's revenue was up 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Announces Dividend

The firm 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 of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.34%.

Insider Transactions at CocaCola

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $19,197,000.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 275,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. This trade represents a 49.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 37,396 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 209,513 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,477,348.30. The trade was a 15.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.