Ballast Inc. Lowers Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Ballast Inc. cut its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,369 shares of the company’s stock after selling 680 shares during the quarter. Ballast Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $788,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Freedom Wealth Alliance LLC purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. ZRC Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Coca-Cola by 213.3% during the fourth quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, KB Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the first quarter worth about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KO has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.00.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at $26,968,753.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Coca-Cola news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,102,114.91. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 375,407 shares of company stock valued at $22,795,742 over the last quarter. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO opened at $61.16 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $60.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $263.67 billion, a PE ratio of 24.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.59. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1-year low of $51.55 and a 1-year high of $64.99.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $10.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.68 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 42.50%. Coca-Cola’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.45 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a $0.485 dividend. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.17%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 78.23%.

Coca-Cola 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.