Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Invests $53.79 Million in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 864,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $53,793,000. Coca-Cola accounts for 0.8% of Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 74,163,187 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,617,400,000 after purchasing an additional 11,569,920 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at $3,402,151,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 43,802,296 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,727,131,000 after buying an additional 3,811,756 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 21.9% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,103,772 shares of the company's stock worth $2,123,301,000 after buying an additional 6,118,819 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 96.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 24,949,194 shares of the company's stock worth $1,553,337,000 after buying an additional 12,222,885 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Coca-Cola stock opened at $69.25 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $298.07 billion, a PE ratio of 28.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $60.62 and a 12-month high of $74.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $70.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. The business had revenue of $11.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.72 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.95%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total value of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total value of $3,882,079.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,520,662.64. The trade was a 18.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 462,407 shares of company stock valued at $32,990,056. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on KO. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Cfra Research raised shares of Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.59.

Coca-Cola 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.

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