Treasurer of the State of North Carolina Buys 8,260 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,749,506 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 8,260 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $108,924,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Peachtree Investment Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Peachtree Investment Partners LLC now owns 11,189 shares of the company's stock valued at $697,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the period. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC now owns 4,993 shares of the company's stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Excalibur Management Corp raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Excalibur Management Corp now owns 29,412 shares of the company's stock worth $1,831,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 3,616 shares of the company's stock valued at $225,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, Atlas Brown Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 21,024 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,309,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company's stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of KO stock traded up $0.69 on Monday, hitting $72.12. 5,399,804 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,305,283. 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 capitalization of $310.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.95. The business has a 50-day moving average of $69.60 and a 200 day moving average of $66.32.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share 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%. 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 was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.51 dividend. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola's payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on KO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped 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. UBS Group increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $69.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Two 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $74.24.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total value of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071 in the last three months. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.