Meeder Asset Management Inc. Trims Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 90.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 662 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,972 shares during the quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $42,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 21.5% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 49,297,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,016,023,000 after acquiring an additional 8,733,326 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 11,127.2% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,972,733 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,043,000 after acquiring an additional 4,928,441 shares during the period. Pathstone Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at about $193,342,000. Putnam Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 32.8% during the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 12,032,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $709,051,000 after acquiring an additional 2,973,234 shares during the period. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 30.5% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 12,698,984 shares of the company’s stock valued at $776,924,000 after acquiring an additional 2,964,850 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Argus upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Coca-Cola in a research report on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.73.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, major shareholder Cola Co Coca sold 598,619 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $925.00, for a total transaction of $553,722,575.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,883,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,742,280,050. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 19,304 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.96, for a total value of $1,253,987.84. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,507,516.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Cola Co Coca sold 598,619 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $925.00, for a total value of $553,722,575.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,883,546 shares in the company, valued at $1,742,280,050. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 974,715 shares of company stock worth $579,704,927. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Coca-Cola stock opened at $71.41 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The company has a market capitalization of $307.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.56, a PEG ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.60. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $68.28 and its 200 day moving average is $63.95. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $51.55 and a twelve month high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $12.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.78 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 43.62% and a net margin of 22.92%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.78 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.72%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is 77.60%.

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.