Zega Financial LLC Takes Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Zega Financial LLC purchased a new position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 17,158 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,092,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 21.5% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 49,297,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,016,023,000 after acquiring an additional 8,733,326 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 11,127.2% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,972,733 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,043,000 after buying an additional 4,928,441 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at about $193,342,000. Putnam Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 32.8% in the fourth quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 12,032,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $709,051,000 after buying an additional 2,973,234 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 30.5% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 12,698,984 shares of the company’s stock worth $776,924,000 after buying an additional 2,964,850 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $71.80 on Wednesday. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $51.55 and a 52-week high of $73.53. The business’s 50 day moving average is $68.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $64.13. The firm has a market cap of $309.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 43.62% and a net margin of 22.92%. The firm had revenue of $12.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.78 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 77.60%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,987,070.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 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 stock was sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction of $7,179,360.66. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,987,070.92. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Cola Co Coca sold 598,619 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $925.00, for a total value of $553,722,575.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,883,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,742,280,050. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 974,715 shares of company stock worth $579,704,927. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on KO. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Cfra reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, September 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.07.

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.