Abacus Planning Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Abacus Planning Group Inc. boosted its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 2.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,660 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 718 shares during the quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $2,196,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in KO. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. REAP Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 57.5% during the 4th quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 570 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.9% in the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of Coca-Cola stock opened at $71.37 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $60.62 and a 12 month high of $74.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $307.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.89, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $71.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $67.60.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. The company had revenue of $11.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.72 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on KO shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Cfra Research raised Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.81.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total transaction of $19,197,000.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 275,946 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,884,668.76. This represents a 49.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total transaction of $1,806,547.19. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 52,466 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,749,745.02. This trade represents a 32.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 440,664 shares of company stock worth $31,730,532. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

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.