Freedom Investment Management Inc. Lowers Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Freedom Investment Management Inc. cut its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 8.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,231 shares of the company’s stock after selling 564 shares during the quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $448,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in KO. New Millennium Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Hara Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $35,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Mount Lucas Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on KO shares. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Cfra reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total value of $6,403,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. This trade represents a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of KO opened at $64.12 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $276.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.50, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $57.47 and a 12 month high of $73.53. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $67.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

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

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 80.17%.

Coca-Cola 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.