Toronto Dominion Bank Lowers Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Toronto Dominion Bank lowered its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 18.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,980,183 shares of the company's stock after selling 444,372 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $123,285,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Voleon Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $2,513,000. Rice Partnership LLC lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company's stock worth $6,397,000 after purchasing an additional 6,793 shares during the period. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 62.2% in the 4th quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 26,708 shares of the company's stock worth $1,663,000 after purchasing an additional 10,240 shares during the period. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 218,985 shares of the company's stock worth $13,634,000 after purchasing an additional 30,650 shares during the period. Finally, abrdn plc lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 7,238,640 shares of the company's stock worth $447,963,000 after purchasing an additional 22,904 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of KO stock traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $71.89. The company had a trading volume of 13,273,656 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,658,157. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $70.88 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.78. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $60.62 and a one year high of $74.38. The firm has a market cap of $309.43 billion, a PE ratio of 29.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03.

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

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.84%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio is presently 81.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Cfra Research upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $75.59.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In related news, CFO John Murphy sold 88,658 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.09, for a total value of $6,391,355.22. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 205,511 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,815,287.99. This trade represents a 30.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.87, for a total transaction of $4,335,629.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 187,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,491,148.92. The trade was a 24.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 462,407 shares of company stock worth $32,990,056 over the last three months. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.