Ninety One SA PTY Ltd Takes $16.80 Million Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Ninety One SA PTY Ltd bought a new position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 285,074 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,799,000. Coca-Cola makes up about 2.6% of Ninety One SA PTY Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Castleview Partners LLC boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 3,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $246,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Enterprise Bank & Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Enterprise Bank & Trust Co now owns 5,021 shares of the company’s stock valued at $296,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the period. Elk River Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Elk River Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,838 shares of the company’s stock valued at $639,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC now owns 4,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $274,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Somerville Kurt F increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Somerville Kurt F now owns 21,377 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,325,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.4 %

KO stock traded up $0.26 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $58.77. The stock had a trading volume of 6,260,574 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,714,590. The firm has a market cap of $253.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.70, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.59. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $51.55 and a twelve month high of $64.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.52.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $10.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 42.50%. Coca-Cola’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.45 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.485 per share. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.30%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 78.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $3,138,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,602,980. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, 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 transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $26,968,753.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $3,138,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 143,383 shares in the company, valued at $8,602,980. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

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.