The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Purchased by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 11.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 747,641 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 76,438 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola accounts for approximately 0.5% of Xponance Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $44,058,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 80,448,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,503,484,000 after acquiring an additional 1,950,146 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 63,138,970 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,501,789,000 after acquiring an additional 2,464,618 shares during the period. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 103,297.9% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 57,734,303 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,672,479,000 after acquiring an additional 57,678,466 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,937,315,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 44,913,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,514,234,000 after buying an additional 2,040,664 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

KO traded up $0.40 during trading on Thursday, hitting $58.91. 11,107,939 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,742,084. The firm has a market capitalization of $253.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.74, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.59. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $51.55 and a 1-year high of $64.99. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $59.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $10.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.68 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.50% and a net margin of 23.42%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.45 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 78.23%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,968,753.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total value of $3,491,990.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $13,594,097.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total value of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock valued at $22,795,742. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on KO. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.18.

About Coca-Cola

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.