CENTRAL TRUST Co Reduces Stock Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

CENTRAL TRUST Co cut its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 180,246 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,637 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $12,952,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth about $28,000. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 65.0% in the 1st quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 523 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $68.02 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The firm has a market cap of $293.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.21, a PEG ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.60. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $70.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $65.96. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $55.10 and a 12-month high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.92% and a return on equity of 43.62%. The business had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.61 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.74 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.60%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $1,321,606.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,968,095. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 58,122 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.51, for a total transaction of $3,981,938.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,074,330.17. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $1,321,606.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $15,968,095. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 356,792 shares of company stock worth $24,728,364. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KO. Truist Financial increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.87.

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.