AIA Group Ltd Lowers Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

AIA Group Ltd decreased its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 41.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,016 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,328 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,433,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC now owns 4,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $311,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Excalibur Management Corp boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Excalibur Management Corp now owns 29,412 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,831,000 after buying an additional 161 shares during the period. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 3,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. increased its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 21,024 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,309,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Finally, Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 39,198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,440,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $961,317.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,769,334. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on KO. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 1.9 %

Coca-Cola stock opened at $71.69 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $308.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.02, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $57.93 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $67.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.38.

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

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.85%. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Coca-Cola Company 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.