New York Life Investment Management LLC Buys 37,622 Shares of Coca-Cola Company (The) $KO

New York Life Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Coca-Cola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 577,035 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 37,622 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $49,671,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. 71 West Capital Partners lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 32.1% in the 3rd quarter. 71 West Capital Partners now owns 27,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,333,000 after buying an additional 6,583 shares in the last quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 29,827 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,567,000 after buying an additional 1,212 shares during the last quarter. Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter valued at about $209,000. AlphaCore Capital LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 50.9% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC now owns 61,871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,356,000 after buying an additional 20,867 shares during the period. Finally, Clear Wave Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Clear Wave Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,855 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,107,000 after acquiring an additional 584 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 67,548 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.91, for a total value of $6,410,980.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 160,428 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,226,221.48. The trade was a 29.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 111,365 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.93, for a total transaction of $10,126,419.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 41,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,761,319.45. This represents a 72.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 249,498 shares of company stock valued at $23,025,238. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Coca-Cola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Coca-Cola’s push into functional beverages is gaining traction, with fairlife, Powerade and smartwater growth, alongside innovation and capacity expansion, offering potential avenues for growth. Can Coca-Cola Benefit From Rising Demand for Functional Drinks?
• Positive Sentiment: Several articles emphasize KO’s durable brands and its 64-year record of dividend increases, reinforcing its appeal to long-term income investors. One report also notes Berkshire Hathaway receives about $848 million annually in dividends from its Coca-Cola investment. Coca-Cola’s Dividend Has Grown 64 Years in a Row Warren Buffett’s Coca-Cola Investment
• Neutral Sentiment: Coca-Cola India is advancing draft papers for an IPO. The report does not specify how the offering could affect KO financially. Coca-Cola India IPO moves forward with draft papers
• Neutral Sentiment: EVP Nancy Quan sold shares to cover tax withholding on vested equity awards and retained a substantial stake, making the transaction less informative as a signal about her outlook. Coca-Cola EVP Nancy Quan Sells Shares
• Negative Sentiment: Some commentary cautions that KO’s share-price gains have outpaced revisions to its earnings outlook, raising valuation concerns. Higher real Treasury yields and competing bond yields could also make dividend stocks less attractive to some investors. Coca-Cola Stock Keeps Setting Records Treasuries Now Offer 2.66% Above Inflation

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on KO shares. CICC Research boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $85.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “buy (a+)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. DZ Bank reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Seaport Research Partners set a $95.00 price objective on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $97.26.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

KO stock opened at $96.94 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $417.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.28. Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $67.27 and a 12-month high of $97.39. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $90.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $13.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.92 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 38.79% and a net margin of 28.65%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.82 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Coca-Cola Company will post 3.34 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

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

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.