Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Boosts Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 9.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 911,236 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 78,390 shares during the quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $56,542,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 399,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,716,000 after buying an additional 2,069 shares during the period. United Bank grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 65.4% during the third quarter. United Bank now owns 80,888 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,813,000 after buying an additional 31,979 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,994 shares of the company’s stock worth $359,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter worth about $932,000. Finally, Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 10.7% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 47,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,425,000 after purchasing an additional 4,613 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total transaction of $10,327,339.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,324,191.46. The trade was a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 288,146 shares of company stock valued at $20,456,524 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO opened at $69.95 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $300.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a 50 day moving average of $65.87 and a 200-day moving average of $66.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $57.93 and a twelve month high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. 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 report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.24.

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.