Garrison Bradford & Associates Inc. Acquires New Shares in Coca-Cola Company (The) $KO

Garrison Bradford & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 18,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,549,000. Coca-Cola accounts for about 1.8% of Garrison Bradford & Associates Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Coca-Cola by 4.4% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 45,958,636 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,735,058,000 after buying an additional 1,939,673 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 36,354,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,954,523,000 after buying an additional 162,097 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 9.2% in the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 29,053,752 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,361,198,000 after acquiring an additional 2,439,026 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Coca-Cola by 1.3% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 18,822,295 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,431,495,000 after acquiring an additional 235,785 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fayez Sarofim & Co increased its position in Coca-Cola by 0.7% during the second quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co now owns 15,272,831 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,241,223,000 after acquiring an additional 113,599 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Coca-Cola from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price target on Coca-Cola from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $86.00 price target (up from $82.00) on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. BNP Paribas Exane increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $100.00 price objective (up from $88.00) on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.26.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO John Murphy sold 152,483 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.31, for a total transaction of $13,313,290.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 279,917 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,439,553.27. The trade was a 35.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 111,365 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.93, for a total transaction of $10,126,419.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 41,365 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,761,319.45. This represents a 72.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 323,806 shares of company stock valued at $28,820,577 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

More Coca-Cola News

Here are the key news stories impacting Coca-Cola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Coca-Cola exceeded expectations with third-quarter adjusted EPS of $0.91 versus $0.88 expected and revenue of approximately $13.35 billion versus $12.92 billion expected. Revenue increased 7.2% year over year, while global unit-case volume rose 5%, led by Coca-Cola Zero Sugar and international markets. Coca-Cola Q3 Earnings Beat Estimates on Volume Growth, Outlook Raised
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised its 2026 comparable EPS-growth outlook to at least 11%, up from the prior 9%-10% forecast, marking the third consecutive outlook increase. Margin strength, pricing, favorable currency trends and resilient demand for zero-sugar and premium beverages supported the improved outlook. KO Q3 Earnings Call Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts became more constructive: Citigroup raised its target to $103 with a Buy rating, TD Cowen raised its target to $104 with a Buy rating, and JPMorgan lifted its target to $98 with an Overweight rating. Coca-Cola Analyst Forecasts
• Neutral Sentiment: Coca-Cola’s 64-year dividend-growth record and roughly 2.3% yield continue to appeal to income-focused investors, but the valuation leaves less room for error after a substantial share-price rally.
• Negative Sentiment: North American volume was flat, with weakness in water, sports drinks, coffee and tea. Analysts also cited potential consumer pressure into 2027, pending IRS litigation and future revenue effects from divestitures. Freedom Broker therefore raised its target only to $89 and retained a Hold rating. Coca-Cola Earnings Beat and Outlook

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of Coca-Cola stock opened at $91.75 on Thursday. Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $67.27 and a one year high of $95.37. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $89.35 and its 200 day moving average is $81.84. The stock has a market cap of $394.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.30.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $13.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.92 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 39.38% and a net margin of 28.56%. Coca-Cola’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.82 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Coca-Cola Company will post 3.30 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 63.66%.

About Coca-Cola

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a global beverage company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1886, it is best known for Coca-Cola, one of the world’s most recognized soft drink brands.

The company owns, licenses, and markets a broad portfolio of beverages, including sparkling soft drinks, water, sports drinks, coffee, tea, juice, dairy and plant-based beverages, and energy drinks. Its brands include Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Dasani, smartwater, Powerade, Minute Maid, Simply, fairlife, and Costa Coffee, among others.

The Coca-Cola Company serves consumers in more than 200 countries and territories through a system that includes company-operated operations, independent bottling partners, distributors, retailers, and food-service providers.