Coca-Cola Company (The) $KO Stock Sold by King Luther Capital Management Corp

King Luther Capital Management Corp trimmed its stake in shares of Coca-Cola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) by 3.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,540,772 shares of the company’s stock after selling 126,754 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola makes up 1.3% of King Luther Capital Management Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. King Luther Capital Management Corp’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $304,790,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Guardian Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Horizons Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Atomic Invest LLC lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 38.7% during the second quarter. Atomic Invest LLC now owns 437 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Timbuktu Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the second quarter worth about $41,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on KO shares. UBS Group lifted their price target on Coca-Cola from $104.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Barclays upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $93.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 16th. Seaport Research Partners set a $95.00 target price on Coca-Cola in a report on Friday, August 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $86.00 target price (up from $82.00) on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, CICC Research boosted their price target on Coca-Cola from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $97.26.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coca-Cola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 111,365 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.93, for a total value of $10,126,419.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 41,365 shares in the company, valued at $3,761,319.45. The trade was a 72.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 20,585 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.62, for a total value of $1,968,337.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,354,814.60. This trade represents a 8.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 249,498 shares of company stock worth $23,025,238 over the last quarter. 0.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $97.59 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $419.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.28. Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $67.27 and a 1-year high of $97.83. The company’s fifty day moving average is $90.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.38.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 28.65% and a return on equity of 38.79%. The company had revenue of $13.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.92 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.82 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Coca-Cola Company will post 3.34 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is 62.35%.

Key Stories Impacting Coca-Cola

Here are a few of the latest stories about KO:

• Positive Sentiment: Articles point to KO’s durable business, strong free cash flow and 64-year dividend-growth streak. One recent comparison argues its 2.3% yield is supported by stronger business fundamentals than Kraft Heinz’s higher yield. Kraft Heinz Yields 6.6% and Coca-Cola Yields 2.3%
• Neutral Sentiment: CFO John Murphy is scheduled to present at the Morgan Stanley Global Consumer & Retail Conference on Dec. 2. The announcement provides an opportunity for investor updates but included no new financial guidance. Conference participation announcement
• Negative Sentiment: KO’s roughly 36% one-year rise has reduced its forward dividend yield to about 2.2%, and commentary cautions that the shares are not cheap. This could limit upside if earnings growth does not keep pace with the stock’s advance. Coca-Cola Stock Is Up 36% in a Year

Coca-Cola Company Profile

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a global beverage company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1886, it is best known for Coca-Cola, one of the world’s most recognized soft drink brands. The company owns, licenses, and markets a broad portfolio of beverages, including sparkling soft drinks, water, sports drinks, coffee, tea, juice, dairy and plant-based beverages, and energy drinks. Its brands include Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Dasani, smartwater, Powerade, Minute Maid, Simply, fairlife, and Costa Coffee, among others.