Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Sells 61,948 Shares of CocaCola Company (The) $KO

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,583,329 shares of the company’s stock after selling 61,948 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc.’s holdings in CocaCola were worth $105,006,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 1.7% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 367,441,971 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,996,519,000 after buying an additional 6,241,163 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its stake in shares of CocaCola by 82.3% in the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 49,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,296,000 after acquiring an additional 22,444 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,051,957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $136,086,000 after acquiring an additional 57,407 shares in the last quarter. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. boosted its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 42.3% during the 3rd quarter. Nicola Wealth Management LTD. now owns 185,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,269,000 after acquiring an additional 55,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its position in CocaCola by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 10,408,798 shares of the company’s stock worth $690,311,000 after acquiring an additional 198,886 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

CocaCola Stock Performance

Shares of KO opened at $77.34 on Friday. CocaCola Company has a one year low of $65.35 and a one year high of $82.00. The company has a market cap of $332.60 billion, a PE ratio of 25.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.35. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $75.64 and a 200-day moving average of $71.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $11.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.04 billion. CocaCola had a return on equity of 41.31% and a net margin of 27.34%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.55 EPS. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.210-3.240 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from CocaCola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. CocaCola’s payout ratio is currently 67.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 337,824 shares of CocaCola stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.10, for a total value of $26,046,230.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,410,296.60. This trade represents a 49.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 28,765 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.41, for a total transaction of $2,284,228.65. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 892,925 shares of company stock worth $70,254,796 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley set a $88.00 target price on CocaCola in a report on Wednesday. Barclays boosted their price target on CocaCola from $77.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $83.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of CocaCola in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.40.

CocaCola Company Profile

The Coca‑Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a global beverage manufacturer, marketer and distributor best known for its flagship Coca‑Cola soda. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company develops and sells concentrates, syrups and finished beverages across a broad portfolio of brands. Its product range spans sparkling soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready‑to‑drink teas and coffees, and other still beverages, marketed under both global and regional brand names.

Coca‑Cola’s brand portfolio includes widely recognized names such as Coca‑Cola, Diet Coke, Coca‑Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade and Dasani, and in recent years the company has expanded into the coffee and premium beverage categories through acquisitions such as Costa Coffee.