The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. trimmed its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 11.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,321 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,666 shares during the period. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,610,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 103,297.9% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 57,734,303 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,672,479,000 after acquiring an additional 57,678,466 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at $2,937,315,000. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 79,101,856 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,031,669,000 after acquiring an additional 10,722,435 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 164.7% during the 2nd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 14,430,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $868,981,000 after acquiring an additional 8,979,379 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 61.4% during the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 10,764,084 shares of the company’s stock valued at $667,373,000 after acquiring an additional 4,095,881 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $13,594,097.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 18,551 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.41, for a total value of $1,102,114.91. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,594,097.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $58.06 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $250.31 billion, a PE ratio of 23.41, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 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. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $59.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $10.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.68 billion. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 42.50%. Coca-Cola’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.45 earnings per share. Analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.34%. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is 78.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays increased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.18.

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.