United Asset Strategies Inc. Acquires 1,475 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

United Asset Strategies Inc. boosted its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 33,697 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,475 shares during the quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,986,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Morgan Stanley raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 80,448,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,503,484,000 after acquiring an additional 1,950,146 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 4.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 63,138,970 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,501,789,000 after purchasing an additional 2,464,618 shares in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 103,297.9% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 57,734,303 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,672,479,000 after purchasing an additional 57,678,466 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $2,937,315,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 44,913,068 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,514,234,000 after purchasing an additional 2,040,664 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total value of $3,491,990.16. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $13,594,097.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total value of $3,491,990.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $13,594,097.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,102,114.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 375,407 shares of company stock valued at $22,795,742. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.18.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE KO traded up $0.10 on Tuesday, hitting $58.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,646,266 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,708,768. The firm has a market cap of $251.08 billion, a PE ratio of 23.45, a PEG ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 0.59. The company’s 50-day moving average is $60.01 and its 200 day moving average is $58.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $51.55 and a 1-year high of $64.99.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced 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. The business had revenue of $10.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.68 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.50% and a net margin of 23.42%. Coca-Cola’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.45 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.33%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.23%.

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.