Mechanics Bank Trust Department Cuts Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department lessened its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 81,250 shares of the company’s stock after selling 533 shares during the period. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $4,893,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Czech National Bank grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 0.5% in the second quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 460,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,746,000 after purchasing an additional 2,196 shares during the last quarter. Trinity Legacy Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 29.8% in the 2nd quarter. Trinity Legacy Partners LLC now owns 5,384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $324,000 after buying an additional 1,236 shares in the last quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 72,842 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,387,000 after buying an additional 523 shares during the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 7.9% during the 2nd quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,541 shares of the company’s stock worth $334,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, City State Bank lifted its position in Coca-Cola by 12.4% during the second quarter. City State Bank now owns 22,195 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,337,000 after acquiring an additional 2,452 shares during the last quarter. 68.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KO has been the topic of several analyst reports. HSBC cut their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $77.00 to $74.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 7th. Wedbush increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 27th. Barclays boosted their price target on Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 28th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.33.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other news, SVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 21,074 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.90, for a total transaction of $1,283,406.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 18,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,118,124. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 21,074 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.90, for a total transaction of $1,283,406.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 18,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,118,124. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO John Murphy sold 156,290 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.10, for a total transaction of $9,705,609.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 228,830 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,210,343. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 227,364 shares of company stock worth $14,122,016. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO opened at $57.94 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $250.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.84, a P/E/G ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.55. The business’s 50-day moving average is $60.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $61.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.14. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $54.01 and a fifty-two week high of $64.99.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 26th. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.06. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 43.06% and a net margin of 23.81%. The company had revenue of $12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.74 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.70 earnings per share. Coca-Cola’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 75.72%.

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.