The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Acquired by Avantax Planning Partners Inc.

Avantax Planning Partners Inc. grew its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 3.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 170,451 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,169 shares during the period. Avantax Planning Partners Inc.'s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $10,612,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 13.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 92,961,376 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,680,205,000 after purchasing an additional 11,206,995 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 92,957,028 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,664,005,000 after purchasing an additional 2,966,964 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 74,163,187 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,617,400,000 after purchasing an additional 11,569,920 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,615,428 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,271,885,000 after purchasing an additional 4,013,996 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 27,984,953 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,990,407,000 after purchasing an additional 1,609,565 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of Coca-Cola stock traded down $0.45 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $71.00. 28,069,766 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 14,037,215. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 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 $73.53. The business has a fifty day moving average of $65.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.58. The company has a market capitalization of $305.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) 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, research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued 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 dividend yield of 2.87%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio is currently 82.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on KO shares. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $74.24.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $961,317.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 94,676 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,769,334. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total transaction of $3,882,079.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 288,146 shares of company stock valued at $20,456,524. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company 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.