Navalign LLC Sells 791 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Navalign LLC decreased its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,403 shares of the company’s stock after selling 791 shares during the period. Navalign LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,261,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. bought a new position in Coca-Cola in the 1st quarter valued at $77,000. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 16.7% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 12,227 shares of the company’s stock worth $758,000 after purchasing an additional 1,754 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 41.4% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 149,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,255,000 after buying an additional 43,680 shares during the period. Ergoteles LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 385.3% during the 1st quarter. Ergoteles LLC now owns 19,032 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,180,000 after buying an additional 15,110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 11.9% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 2,840,557 shares of the company’s stock valued at $176,115,000 after buying an additional 301,804 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:KO traded up $0.13 on Thursday, reaching $61.16. The company had a trading volume of 13,680,433 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,194,525. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $263.67 billion, a PE ratio of 24.65, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.59. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $51.55 and a 52-week high of $64.99. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $60.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $58.32.

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

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.17%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on KO. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Barclays raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 is available at this link. 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 shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $3,138,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,602,980. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

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.