Raymond James & Associates Boosts Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 2.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,378,983 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 92,068 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates owned 0.10% of Coca-Cola worth $267,906,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of KO. ZRC Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 213.3% during the fourth quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Citigroup upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.22.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO stock remained flat at $61.74 during mid-day trading on Friday. 10,994,262 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 12,842,353. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $60.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.13. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $51.55 and a twelve month high of $64.69. The company has a market capitalization of $266.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.90, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.59.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.01. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 42.50%. The business had revenue of $10.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.45 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.14%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 78.23%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $3,138,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,602,980. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $3,138,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,602,980. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total transaction of $1,102,114.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock valued at $22,795,742. 0.97% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.