IFP Advisors Inc Acquires 14,872 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 31.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 62,517 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 14,872 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $3,892,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the third quarter valued at about $18,383,000. Balentine LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 92.4% in the third quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 28,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,048,000 after acquiring an additional 13,685 shares during the last quarter. Rice Partnership LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,397,000 after acquiring an additional 6,793 shares during the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 104.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 116,214 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,351,000 after purchasing an additional 59,503 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 87.7% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 18,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,132,000 after purchasing an additional 8,499 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of Coca-Cola stock opened at $70.58 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $63.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.42. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $57.93 and a one year high of $73.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $304.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.57, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61.

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

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.89%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 78.54%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on KO. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $69.00 price objective on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $73.82.

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.