Venturi Wealth Management LLC Buys 305 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,994 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 305 shares during the quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $359,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $18,383,000. Balentine LLC increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 92.4% during the 3rd quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 28,493 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,048,000 after purchasing an additional 13,685 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its stake in shares of 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 worth $32,895,000 after purchasing an additional 21,005 shares during the period. Advisor Resource Council purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter worth about $769,000. Finally, United Bank grew its position in Coca-Cola by 65.4% during the third quarter. United Bank now owns 80,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,813,000 after buying an additional 31,979 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 opened at $63.21 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $69.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.52. The company has a market cap of $272.30 billion, a PE ratio of 26.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 0.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $56.60 and a 12-month high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.45% and a return on equity of 44.01%. The firm had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

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 given a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.07%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.17%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $7,179,360.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,987,070.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction of $7,179,360.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $30,987,070.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 40,334 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.54, for a total value of $2,804,826.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 74,067 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,150,619.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 303,748 shares of company stock valued at $20,677,431. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on KO shares. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Cfra restated a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. StockNews.com downgraded Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $71.80.

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.