Canal Capital Management LLC Grows Stock Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Canal Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 183.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,009 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 13,593 shares during the period. Canal Capital Management LLC's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,308,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 41.9% in the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Trading Down 1.1 %

KO stock traded down $0.79 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $72.51. The company's stock had a trading volume of 16,878,196 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,405,031. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $59.84 and a 12 month high of $74.38. 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 business's 50 day moving average price is $70.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.47. The company has a market cap of $312.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio is 82.59%.

Insider Activity

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total value of $3,882,079.68. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,520,662.64. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. 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 report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Cfra Research upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.06.

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.