LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC Buys 1,385 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 25.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,741 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,385 shares during the period. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $419,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 41.9% in the 4th quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 1.4 %

KO opened at $72.43 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $69.78 and a 200-day moving average of $66.32. The company has a market capitalization of $311.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.45. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. On average, equities analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 82.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $10,327,339.35. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total value of $1,806,547.19. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 52,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,749,745.02. The trade was a 32.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $69.00 price objective on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.24.

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.