Huntington National Bank Cuts Stock Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Huntington National Bank decreased its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 610,219 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,968 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $37,992,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC boosted 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 worth $28,716,000 after acquiring an additional 2,069 shares in the last quarter. Atom Investors LP acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $395,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 485.4% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 93,563 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,724,000 after purchasing an additional 77,580 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 8.1% in the third quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,939 shares of the company’s stock worth $499,000 after buying an additional 522 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 10.5% during the third quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 77,283 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,554,000 after buying an additional 7,317 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

KO opened at $71.85 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $309.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.09, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $68.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $57.93 and a 52-week high of $73.53.

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

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.51 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.84%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $69.00 target price on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.24.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was 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 directly owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at $6,769,334. This represents a 12.44 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was 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. Insiders have sold a total of 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071 in the last 90 days. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.