New York State Common Retirement Fund Trims Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

New York State Common Retirement Fund decreased its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 6.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,845,080 shares of the company’s stock after selling 408,827 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $344,451,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 12.2% during the 3rd quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 41,683 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,354,000 after buying an additional 4,527 shares in the last quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 7.6% during the 3rd quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,770 shares of the company’s stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 476 shares in the last quarter. Wahed Invest LLC grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 10.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 61,355 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,435,000 after buying an additional 5,707 shares in the last quarter. Cohen Lawrence B grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cohen Lawrence B now owns 40,872 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,288,000 after buying an additional 1,111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 46,470 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,738,000 after buying an additional 1,455 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE KO traded up $0.38 during trading on Monday, hitting $60.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 15,620,230 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,901,615. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $51.55 and a fifty-two week high of $64.99. The company has a market cap of $261.04 billion, a PE ratio of 24.42, a P/E/G ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $58.67.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 42.50% and a net margin of 23.42%. The firm had revenue of $10.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.45 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.20%. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on KO shares. Barclays raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.09.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total value of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $26,968,753.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $26,968,753.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of Coca-Cola 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,602,980. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742 over the last three months. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.