Coca Cola Femsa S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:KOF) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Coca Cola Femsa S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE:KOF) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 561,734 shares, an increase of 30.9% from the December 15th total of 428,994 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 154,928 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.6 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 154,928 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.6 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of Coca Cola Femsa by 4,404.3% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,681,955 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,665,000 after purchasing an additional 1,644,614 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Coca Cola Femsa by 87.4% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 589,519 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,024,000 after purchasing an additional 274,894 shares during the last quarter. Cullen Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Coca Cola Femsa by 2.4% during the second quarter. Cullen Capital Management LLC now owns 531,055 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,369,000 after purchasing an additional 12,312 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Coca Cola Femsa by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 371,596 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,944,000 after purchasing an additional 14,773 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Coca Cola Femsa by 34.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 301,266 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,035,000 after purchasing an additional 77,475 shares during the period.

Coca Cola Femsa Stock Performance

NYSE:KOF traded down $2.00 on Friday, reaching $99.15. 450,126 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 143,321. Coca Cola Femsa has a 52-week low of $72.68 and a 52-week high of $102.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The business has a fifty day moving average of $92.50 and a 200-day moving average of $88.16.

Coca Cola Femsa (NYSE:KOF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 24th. The company reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.48 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.96 billion. Coca Cola Femsa had a net margin of 8.13% and a return on equity of 15.79%. Equities analysts predict that Coca Cola Femsa will post 5.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca Cola Femsa Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 8th were given a $0.9979 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 8th. This represents a $3.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. Coca Cola Femsa’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KOF has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on Coca Cola Femsa from $109.00 to $111.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Coca Cola Femsa in a report on Friday, December 26th. Barclays restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $98.00 price objective on shares of Coca Cola Femsa in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Coca Cola Femsa from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Coca Cola Femsa from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $104.67.

About Coca Cola Femsa

Coca‑Cola FEMSA (NYSE: KOF) is a large multinational beverage bottler and distributor operating primarily in Mexico and across multiple markets in Latin America. As a principal franchise bottler for The Coca‑Cola Company, the firm is responsible for producing, packaging, marketing and distributing Coca‑Cola branded beverages and a wide range of nonalcoholic drinks to retail and foodservice customers throughout its territories.

The company’s product portfolio includes carbonated soft drinks, bottled water, juices, ready‑to‑drink teas and coffees, sports and energy drinks, and other noncarbonated beverages.