Sterling Capital Management LLC Buys 7,793 Shares of CocaCola Company (The) $KO

Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 161,667 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 7,793 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in CocaCola were worth $11,438,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KO. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of CocaCola by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 39,072 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,433,000 after acquiring an additional 4,591 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in CocaCola by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,795 shares of the company’s stock valued at $548,000 after purchasing an additional 293 shares in the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in CocaCola by 1.3% during the first quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 77,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,563,000 after purchasing an additional 956 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of CocaCola in the 1st quarter worth about $232,000. Finally, Forza Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the 1st quarter valued at about $200,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 13,548 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.93, for a total value of $947,411.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 37,725 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,638,109.25. The trade was a 26.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Max R. Levchin acquired 7,206 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $69.87 per share, for a total transaction of $503,483.22. Following the transaction, the director owned 14,267 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $996,835.29. This represents a 102.05% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

CocaCola Price Performance

Shares of KO stock opened at $69.04 on Friday. CocaCola Company has a twelve month low of $60.62 and a twelve month high of $74.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $296.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.86, a P/E/G ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.43. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $67.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $69.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 27th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter. CocaCola had a return on equity of 43.62% and a net margin of 27.34%.The firm had revenue of $11.40 billion during the quarter. On average, analysts predict that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CocaCola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. CocaCola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.55%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on KO shares. UBS Group dropped their price target on CocaCola from $84.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of CocaCola in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. BNP Paribas reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $83.00 price objective on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of CocaCola in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and sixteen have assigned a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CocaCola presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $78.43.

CocaCola 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.