Intech Investment Management LLC Boosts Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 252,396 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,296 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $15,714,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of KO. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC now owns 4,993 shares of the company’s stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 3,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 21,024 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,309,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 39,198 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,440,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Great Diamond Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC now owns 10,314 shares of the company’s stock worth $642,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $961,317.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at $6,769,334. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total transaction of $1,806,547.19. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 52,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,749,745.02. The trade was a 32.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO opened at $70.15 on Tuesday. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. The company has a market capitalization of $301.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $66.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.91%. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.24.

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.