Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Decreases Stock Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio trimmed its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,935,772 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,287 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola accounts for 0.6% of Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $139,105,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. bought a new position in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter valued at about $18,383,000. Balentine LLC boosted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 92.4% during the third quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 28,493 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,048,000 after buying an additional 13,685 shares during the period. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 104.9% during the third quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 116,214 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,351,000 after buying an additional 59,503 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 850,802 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,122,000 after acquiring an additional 46,541 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 457,782 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,895,000 after acquiring an additional 21,005 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE:KO opened at $62.53 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $66.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.06. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.47 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $269.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.84, a P/E/G ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $11.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.45% and a return on equity of 44.01%. Coca-Cola’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.74 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $6,403,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. This represents a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Cfra reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.14.

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.