Wright Investors Service Inc. Sells 37,005 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Wright Investors Service Inc. cut its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO - Free Report) by 29.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 88,840 shares of the company's stock after selling 37,005 shares during the period. Coca-Cola accounts for about 1.8% of Wright Investors Service Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Wright Investors Service Inc.'s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $5,531,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in KO. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 13.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 92,961,376 shares of the company's stock worth $6,680,205,000 after purchasing an additional 11,206,995 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 14.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,615,428 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,271,885,000 after purchasing an additional 4,013,996 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the third quarter worth $269,382,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 92,957,028 shares of the company's stock worth $6,664,005,000 after buying an additional 2,966,964 shares during the period. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 7,006.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,478,487 shares of the company's stock valued at $178,104,000 after buying an additional 2,443,612 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

NYSE:KO traded up $0.33 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $61.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 16,652,197 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,327,740. The company has a market capitalization of $267.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.61, a P/E/G ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $62.84 and a 200-day moving average of $66.48.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $11.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $11.61 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. Coca-Cola's quarterly revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.74 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.13%. Coca-Cola's dividend payout ratio is presently 80.17%.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total value of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. The trade was a 22.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price 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 7th. Barclays cut their price objective on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Coca-Cola to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Coca-Cola from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $72.60.

Coca-Cola Company 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.