South Dakota Investment Council Sells 2,300 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

South Dakota Investment Council decreased its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 126,488 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,300 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $7,454,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Enterprise Bank & Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Enterprise Bank & Trust Co now owns 5,021 shares of the company’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Elk River Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Elk River Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,838 shares of the company’s stock worth $639,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC now owns 4,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $274,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Wayfinding Financial LLC increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Wayfinding Financial LLC now owns 9,734 shares of the company’s stock worth $573,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, John G Ullman & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. now owns 8,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $476,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO stock traded up $0.81 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $61.45. The stock had a trading volume of 10,868,592 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,850,498. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.72. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $51.55 and a 12 month high of $64.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $264.92 billion, a PE ratio of 24.52, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.59.

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. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.42% and a return on equity of 42.50%. The company had revenue of $10.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.68 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. Coca-Cola’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.16%. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 78.23%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $3,138,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,602,980. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of Coca-Cola 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,968,753.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $3,138,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares in the company, valued at $8,602,980. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742 over the last three months. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.09.

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.