Van ECK Associates Corp Raises Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 962,530 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 15,200 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp's holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $59,928,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of KO. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the third quarter worth $18,383,000. Balentine LLC raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 92.4% in the third quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 28,493 shares of the company's stock worth $2,048,000 after purchasing an additional 13,685 shares during the period. Rice Partnership LLC raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 7.1% in the fourth 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 during the period. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 104.9% in the third 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 raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 8,499 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

NYSE:KO traded down $0.65 on Monday, reaching $68.85. 20,769,370 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,089,333. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market cap of $296.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.45, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52 week low of $57.93 and a 52 week high of $73.53. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $63.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.36.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 net margin of 22.45% and a return on equity of 44.01%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KO has been the topic of several recent research reports. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $69.00 price objective on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler decreased 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.