Calamos Advisors LLC Sells 144,585 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Calamos Advisors LLC reduced its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 11.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,127,992 shares of the company's stock after selling 144,585 shares during the quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $66,473,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Xponance Inc. increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 747,641 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,058,000 after purchasing an additional 76,438 shares in the last quarter. Tiller Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at about $206,000. Flynn Zito Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Flynn Zito Capital Management LLC now owns 12,988 shares of the company's stock valued at $765,000 after acquiring an additional 583 shares in the last quarter. Ninety One SA PTY Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at about $16,799,000. Finally, Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV now owns 35,508 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,093,000 after acquiring an additional 620 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,102,114.91. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Coca-Cola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,102,114.91. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,594,097.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock valued at $22,795,742 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.7 %

NYSE:KO traded up $0.40 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $58.91. The stock had a trading volume of 11,106,106 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,781,219. The company has a market capitalization of $253.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.59. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $51.55 and a 1-year high of $64.99. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $59.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $58.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.95.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $10.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.68 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.50% and a net margin of 23.42%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.29%. This is a boost from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 78.23%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KO. Barclays raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $67.18.

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.