The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Bought by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 9.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,172,065 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 269,491 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned 0.07% of Coca-Cola worth $197,493,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total transaction of $3,882,079.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 52,466 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,749,745.02. This trade represents a 32.51 % decrease in their position. 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. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.5 %

KO opened at $70.36 on Friday. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1 year low of $57.93 and a 1 year high of $73.53. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $67.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.45. 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 company has a market cap of $302.80 billion, a PE ratio of 28.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Sell-side analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.51 dividend. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.90%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.