Ninety One UK Ltd Acquires Shares of 271,600 The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Ninety One UK Ltd bought a new position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 271,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,005,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Morgan Stanley raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 80,448,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,503,484,000 after buying an additional 1,950,146 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position 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 during the period. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 103,297.9% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 57,734,303 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,672,479,000 after purchasing an additional 57,678,466 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth about $2,937,315,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 44,913,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,514,234,000 after buying an additional 2,040,664 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of KO opened at $58.91 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $253.97 billion, a PE ratio of 23.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.59. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1 year low of $51.55 and a 1 year high of $64.99. 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 company’s 50-day simple moving average is $59.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $58.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 42.50%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.45 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company 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. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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 that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,602,980. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,602,980. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 375,407 shares of company stock valued at $22,795,742 over the last 90 days. 0.97% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on KO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.09.

About Coca-Cola

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.