Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Acquires 2,284,429 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 14.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 17,769,958 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,284,429 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 0.41% of Coca-Cola worth $1,106,336,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Elevatus Welath Management lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 28.2% in the 4th quarter. Elevatus Welath Management now owns 6,772 shares of the company's stock valued at $422,000 after purchasing an additional 1,488 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Coca-Cola by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,051,672 shares of the company's stock worth $252,257,000 after purchasing an additional 335,409 shares during the last quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 17.2% in the 4th quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $455,000 after purchasing an additional 1,071 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 24.6% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 46,408 shares of the company's stock worth $2,889,000 after buying an additional 9,161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Frederick Financial Consultants LLC acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at $230,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on KO shares. DZ Bank upgraded Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Cfra Research raised shares of Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Two 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. According to MarketBeat, Coca-Cola has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $74.59.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total transaction of $10,327,339.35. Following the completion of 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071. Insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Coca-Cola stock traded up $1.31 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $72.99. The company's stock had a trading volume of 20,745,798 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,385,871. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $59.72 and a twelve month high of $73.95. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $70.39 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $314.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Research 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 dividend of $0.51 per share. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio 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.