Marco Investment Management LLC Grows Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Marco Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 288,067 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 650 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola comprises approximately 1.7% of Marco Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Marco Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $16,976,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. ZRC Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 213.3% during the fourth quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Avion Wealth boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 64.8% in the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 819 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $53,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO stock remained flat at $61.74 during trading hours on Friday. The stock had a trading volume of 10,994,262 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,842,353. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $51.55 and a 12-month high of $64.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.13. The stock has a market cap of $266.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.90, a P/E/G ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.59. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $60.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.89.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $10.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.50% and a net margin of 23.42%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.45 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 78.23%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $3,138,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,602,980. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $3,138,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,602,980. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total value of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock valued at $22,795,742. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.22.

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.