National Pension Service Raises Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

National Pension Service increased its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,301,967 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 122,533 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned 0.15% of Coca-Cola worth $371,375,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 11,138.6% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,977,819 shares of the company's stock valued at $293,343,000 after acquiring an additional 4,933,527 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 63,138,970 shares of the company's stock worth $3,501,789,000 after buying an additional 2,464,618 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 44,913,068 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,514,234,000 after buying an additional 2,040,664 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 8.2% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 25,845,340 shares of the company's stock worth $1,446,822,000 after acquiring an additional 1,963,963 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.5% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 80,448,083 shares of the company's stock worth $4,503,484,000 after acquiring an additional 1,950,146 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE KO traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $62.89. The company had a trading volume of 9,111,184 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,826,171. The stock has a market cap of $270.93 billion, a PE ratio of 25.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.57. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $51.55 and a one year high of $64.25. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $60.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $59.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.74% and a net margin of 23.41%. The firm had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.68 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Citigroup upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $68.27.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 57,298 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $3,551,903.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 167,107 shares in the company, valued at $10,358,962.93. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 57,298 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $3,551,903.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 167,107 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,358,962.93. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total value of $15,063,636.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 380,405 shares of company stock worth $23,209,645. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

About Coca-Cola

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.