Griffin Asset Management Inc. Decreases Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Griffin Asset Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 153,536 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,875 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola makes up about 1.3% of Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $10,996,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of KO. Tallon Kerry Patrick purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth $241,000. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 39,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,433,000 after purchasing an additional 4,591 shares in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth $24,472,000. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,795 shares of the company’s stock worth $548,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in Coca-Cola by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 962,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,928,000 after acquiring an additional 15,200 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on KO shares. Cfra Research raised Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $76.00.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $70.94 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $305.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $60.62 and a 12-month high of $74.38. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $71.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $67.84.

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

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.60%.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 266,403 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.06, for a total value of $19,197,000.18. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 275,946 shares in the company, valued at $19,884,668.76. The trade was a 49.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 60,326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.87, for a total value of $4,335,629.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 187,716 shares in the company, valued at $13,491,148.92. This trade represents a 24.32% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 415,387 shares of company stock worth $29,923,985. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

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.