Bridgewater Associates LP Cuts Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Bridgewater Associates LP cut its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 68.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 702,287 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,528,387 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $43,724,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. raised its position in Coca-Cola by 41.9% during the fourth 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.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE KO traded up $1.31 on Friday, reaching $72.99. 20,745,798 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,409,159. 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 fifty-two week low of $59.00 and a fifty-two week high of $73.95. The business's fifty day moving average price is $70.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $314.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. 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. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio is 82.59%.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 52,466 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,749,745.02. This trade represents a 32.51 % 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, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,324,191.46. This represents a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Cfra Research raised shares of Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. TD Cowen 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 Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price 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. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $74.59.

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.