The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by QRG Capital Management Inc.

QRG Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 369,805 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,461 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $23,024,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 3,616 shares of the company's stock worth $225,000 after buying an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 21,024 shares of the company's stock worth $1,309,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 39,198 shares of the company's stock worth $2,440,000 after buying an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC now owns 10,314 shares of the company's stock worth $642,000 after buying an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wallace Advisory Group LLC raised its position in Coca-Cola by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Wallace Advisory Group LLC now owns 7,513 shares of the company's stock worth $468,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, TD Cowen 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 Wednesday, January 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $73.82.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $10,327,339.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 232,646 shares of company stock valued at $16,515,469 over the last 90 days. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.2 %

KO stock traded up $0.13 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $70.93. 16,780,602 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,036,717. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $305.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.50. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $57.93 and a 12-month high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.59%.

Coca-Cola 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.