Vinva Investment Management Ltd Increases Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Vinva Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 194,371 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,136 shares during the quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $12,057,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.5% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 399,607 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,716,000 after purchasing an additional 2,069 shares during the period. United Bank boosted its stake in Coca-Cola by 65.4% during the third quarter. United Bank now owns 80,888 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,813,000 after buying an additional 31,979 shares during the last quarter. Aljian Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth $221,000. Napa Wealth Management acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth $200,000. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth $43,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of KO stock opened at $69.34 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $298.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $66.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.51. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $57.93 and a 12-month high of $73.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued 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 return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. On average, equities analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling 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 stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $961,317.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at $6,769,334. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total value of $1,344,732.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on KO. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. TD Cowen upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $74.24.

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.