Ascent Group LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Ascent Group LLC cut its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 85,847 shares of the company’s stock after selling 159 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $5,464,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 65.0% in the first quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 523 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the period. Finally, Mount Lucas Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the second quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on KO. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock 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 issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $71.07.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Cola Co Coca sold 598,619 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $925.00, for a total transaction of $553,722,575.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,883,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,742,280,050. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder Cola Co Coca sold 598,619 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 1,883,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,742,280,050. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 38,653 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.01, for a total value of $2,667,443.53. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 974,715 shares of company stock worth $579,704,927 over the last 90 days. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of Coca-Cola stock opened at $71.79 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $309.27 billion, a PE ratio of 28.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.97 and a beta of 0.60. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $69.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.75. 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 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 data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 43.62% and a net margin of 22.92%. The business had revenue of $12.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.78 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.78 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.70%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Coca-Cola’s 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.