Latitude Advisors LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Latitude Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,129 shares of the company’s stock after selling 265 shares during the period. Latitude Advisors LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $361,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 12.2% in the 3rd quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 41,683 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,354,000 after acquiring an additional 4,527 shares during the last quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,770 shares of the company’s stock valued at $379,000 after acquiring an additional 476 shares during the last quarter. Wahed Invest LLC lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 10.3% in the 3rd quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 61,355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,435,000 after purchasing an additional 5,707 shares during the period. Cohen Lawrence B lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cohen Lawrence B now owns 40,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,288,000 after purchasing an additional 1,111 shares during the period. Finally, Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO raised its position in Coca-Cola by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 46,470 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,738,000 after acquiring an additional 1,455 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total transaction of $1,102,114.91. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 in the company, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,102,114.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on KO shares. Citigroup increased their target price 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. Barclays raised their target price 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. boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.18.

Coca-Cola Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of KO traded down $0.08 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $58.06. 11,236,839 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,953,850. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $51.55 and a 1-year high of $64.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $250.31 billion, a PE ratio of 23.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.59. The business has a fifty day moving average of $59.97 and a 200-day moving average of $58.52.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (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 the consensus estimate 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $0.45 earnings per share. Analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.34%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 78.23%.

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.