The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Bought by Marshall Wace LLP

Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 93.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,571,259 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,240,720 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP owned about 0.06% of Coca-Cola worth $160,087,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of KO. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 74,163,187 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,617,400,000 after acquiring an additional 11,569,920 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,402,151,000. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 21.9% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,103,772 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,123,301,000 after buying an additional 6,118,819 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 18.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 24,566,933 shares of the company's stock worth $1,529,537,000 after buying an additional 3,791,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 18,313,696 shares of the company's stock worth $1,130,138,000 after buying an additional 550,582 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

KO stock traded up $1.31 during trading on Friday, hitting $72.99. The company had a trading volume of 20,745,798 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,409,159. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $59.00 and a 1-year high of $73.95. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $70.39 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.42. 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 cap of $314.13 billion, a PE ratio of 29.55, 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 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 return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. On average, analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.51 dividend. This is an increase from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. Coca-Cola's payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 246,909 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,520,662.64. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071 over the last ninety days. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on KO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. TD Cowen raised Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Evercore ISI lifted 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. Finally, Cfra Research raised Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $74.59.

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.