The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Bought by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 23.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 281,818 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 53,385 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $17,546,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KO. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter valued at $18,383,000. Balentine LLC raised its position in Coca-Cola by 92.4% during the third quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 28,493 shares of the company's stock worth $2,048,000 after acquiring an additional 13,685 shares during the period. Rice Partnership LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,397,000 after buying an additional 6,793 shares during the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 104.9% in the third quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 116,214 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,351,000 after buying an additional 59,503 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 87.7% during the fourth 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 last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $17,520,662.64. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 232,646 shares of company stock worth $16,515,469. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of Coca-Cola stock traded up $0.13 during trading on Thursday, reaching $70.93. The company's stock had a trading volume of 16,780,602 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,036,717. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $64.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.50. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. 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 firm has a market cap of $305.06 billion, a PE ratio of 28.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS 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, analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current 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 given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola's payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on KO shares. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $69.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $73.82.

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.