Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. Acquires 37,917 Shares of CocaCola Company (The) $KO

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) by 16.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 273,151 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 37,917 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in CocaCola were worth $18,115,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in CocaCola during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CocaCola in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of CocaCola in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of CocaCola during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, MMA Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of CocaCola during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CocaCola Price Performance

KO opened at $80.48 on Friday. CocaCola Company has a fifty-two week low of $65.35 and a fifty-two week high of $81.09. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $73.80 and a 200 day moving average of $70.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.46. The firm has a market cap of $346.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.47, a PEG ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.36.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 10th. The company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $11.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.04 billion. CocaCola had a net margin of 27.34% and a return on equity of 41.31%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.55 earnings per share. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.210-3.240 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

CocaCola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from CocaCola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. CocaCola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.11%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on KO shares. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $85.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Truist Financial set a $85.00 target price on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $87.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of CocaCola from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and fifteen have given a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $84.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CocaCola news, CEO James Quincey sold 337,824 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.10, for a total transaction of $26,046,230.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,410,296.60. This represents a 49.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting CocaCola

Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research raised several quarterly and annual EPS forecasts for KO (Q1/Q2 2026–2027 and FY2026–FY2028), lifting FY2027 and FY2028 estimates and nudging nearer‑term quarter estimates higher — a direct fundamental reason for positive sentiment around earnings power and forward profitability. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Citi conference participation: CFO John Murphy will present at the Citi Global Consumer & Retail Conference on March 9, providing investors live access to management commentary and an earnings‑cycle update (could clarify strategy and outlook but is informational rather than catalytic). Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Operational / strategic moves: Coca‑Cola is pausing U.S. availability of Topo Chico temporarily for production upgrades while promoting BodyArmor as the official NCAA March Madness sports drink and preparing a CEO transition — mixed near‑term supply disruption vs. marketing/brand gains and leadership change. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry context & comparisons: Analyst pieces weighing PepsiCo vs. Coca‑Cola and coverage of Keurig Dr Pepper’s plans provide sector framing — useful for relative valuation and positioning but not company‑specific catalysts. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest rose sharply in February — shorted shares increased ~21.5% to ~41.2M (about 1.0% of float) with a ~1.8 days‑to‑cover — that can pressure sentiment and amplify downside on weak news or earnings. Data source: Market data

CocaCola Company Profile

The Coca‑Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a global beverage manufacturer, marketer and distributor best known for its flagship Coca‑Cola soda. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company develops and sells concentrates, syrups and finished beverages across a broad portfolio of brands. Its product range spans sparkling soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready‑to‑drink teas and coffees, and other still beverages, marketed under both global and regional brand names.

Coca‑Cola’s brand portfolio includes widely recognized names such as Coca‑Cola, Diet Coke, Coca‑Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade and Dasani, and in recent years the company has expanded into the coffee and premium beverage categories through acquisitions such as Costa Coffee.