Trust Co of the South Cuts Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Trust Co of the South lessened its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 13.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,456 shares of the company’s stock after selling 829 shares during the quarter. Trust Co of the South’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $340,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of KO. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the second quarter valued at $27,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Mount Lucas Management LP purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE KO traded down $0.50 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $61.76. 4,961,085 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 13,973,826. The company has a market cap of $266.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.52, a P/E/G ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.61. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $63.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $57.93 and a one year high of $73.53.

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

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.14%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Cfra reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.50.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

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

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.