Exchange Capital Management Inc. Reduces Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Exchange Capital Management Inc. lessened its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,361 shares of the company’s stock after selling 644 shares during the quarter. Exchange Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $956,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its holdings 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. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 2.7% during the third quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 14,778 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,062,000 after purchasing an additional 392 shares during the last quarter. Autumn Glory Partners LLC raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 47.6% during the third quarter. Autumn Glory Partners LLC now owns 29,240 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,108,000 after purchasing an additional 9,434 shares during the last quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth $524,000. Finally, Pallas Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 1.8% during the third quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 138,417 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,315,000 after purchasing an additional 2,458 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:KO opened at $71.54 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $57.93 and a one year high of $73.53. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $64.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.44. The stock has a market cap of $308.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share 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, sell-side analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is 78.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on KO. Barclays raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. TD Cowen raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $73.82.

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.