Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. Purchases 6,346 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc. increased its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 10.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 64,673 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,346 shares during the quarter. Lowe Brockenbrough & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $4,679,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. New Millennium Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth $36,000. Finally, 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 last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. 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. StockNews.com cut Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.80.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of KO opened at $65.00 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $70.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.26. The company has a market cap of $280.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.86, a P/E/G ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 0.60. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $56.06 and a one year high of $73.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.90.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. The company had revenue of $11.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS. Coca-Cola’s revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.98%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $7,179,360.66. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $30,987,070.92. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 40,334 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.54, for a total value of $2,804,826.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 74,067 shares in the company, valued at $5,150,619.18. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction of $7,179,360.66. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $30,987,070.92. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 261,870 shares of company stock valued at $18,256,369. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.