Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. Acquires New Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in KO. Morgan Stanley grew its position in Coca-Cola by 2.5% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 80,448,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,503,484,000 after buying an additional 1,950,146 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of 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 worth $3,501,789,000 after acquiring an additional 2,464,618 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 44,913,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,514,234,000 after acquiring an additional 2,040,664 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 25,845,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,446,822,000 after purchasing an additional 1,963,963 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 16.4% in the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 13,804,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $813,523,000 after purchasing an additional 1,949,500 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Coca-Cola 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 transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,968,753.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 57,298 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $3,551,903.02. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 167,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,358,962.93. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 380,405 shares of company stock worth $23,209,645. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $62.62. 9,792,168 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 13,919,606. The stock has a market cap of $269.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.05, a PEG ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $60.32 and a 200-day moving average of $59.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.04. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52 week low of $51.55 and a 52 week high of $64.25.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.01 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.74% and a net margin of 23.41%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.68 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 77.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Barclays upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.27.

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.