IFP Advisors Inc Boosts Stock Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 31.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 62,517 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 14,872 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $3,892,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter valued at about $18,383,000. Balentine LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 92.4% in the third quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 28,493 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,048,000 after acquiring an additional 13,685 shares during the period. Rice Partnership LLC boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company's stock worth $6,397,000 after purchasing an additional 6,793 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 104.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 116,214 shares of the company's stock worth $8,351,000 after purchasing an additional 59,503 shares during the period. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 87.7% during the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 18,189 shares of the company's stock worth $1,132,000 after purchasing an additional 8,499 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KO has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $69.00 target price on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen raised 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 Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $73.82.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at $17,520,662.64. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $961,317.50. Following 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 232,646 shares of company stock valued at $16,515,469. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.2 %

Coca-Cola stock traded up $0.13 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $70.93. 16,780,602 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,036,717. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $305.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $64.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.50. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS 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 analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.