Nicholas Company Inc. Sells 10,115 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Nicholas Company Inc. reduced its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 126,085 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,115 shares during the period. Nicholas Company Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $7,850,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of KO. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC now owns 4,993 shares of the company’s stock worth $311,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC grew its holdings 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 worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the period. Atlas Brown Inc. grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 21,024 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,309,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 39,198 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,440,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. Finally, Great Diamond Partners LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Great Diamond Partners LLC now owns 10,314 shares of the company’s stock worth $642,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE:KO opened at $69.16 on Friday. 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 Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $57.93 and a 12 month high of $73.53. The company has a market cap of $297.47 billion, a PE ratio of 28.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $66.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.58.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. Research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 82.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $961,317.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at $6,769,334. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total transaction of $1,806,547.19. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 52,466 shares in the company, valued at $3,749,745.02. This represents a 32.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI increased 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. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research 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 given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.24.

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.