Argent Trust Co Grows Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Argent Trust Co increased its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 405,362 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 4,744 shares during the period. Coca-Cola comprises 1.0% of Argent Trust Co's portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Argent Trust Co's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $25,238,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 41.9% during the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 52,466 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,749,745.02. This trade represents a 32.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total transaction of $10,327,339.35. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071 over the last quarter. 0.97% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on KO. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $69.00 target price on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of Coca-Cola stock traded up $0.60 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $72.03. The stock had a trading volume of 6,079,028 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,308,013. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1 year low of $57.93 and a 1 year high of $73.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $309.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $69.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.32.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. As a group, 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 business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.83%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.59%.

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.