First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. Purchases 4,787 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 172,421 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,787 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola comprises 2.5% of First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $12,390,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in KO. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 21.5% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 49,297,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,016,023,000 after purchasing an additional 8,733,326 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 30.5% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 12,698,984 shares of the company’s stock worth $776,924,000 after purchasing an additional 2,964,850 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola during the second quarter worth approximately $188,448,000. M&G Plc bought a new stake in Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth approximately $157,087,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its position in Coca-Cola by 7,006.8% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,478,487 shares of the company’s stock worth $178,104,000 after purchasing an additional 2,443,612 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $63.96 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $69.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $66.44. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $56.06 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $275.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.90.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $11.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.61 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 44.01% and a net margin of 22.45%. The business’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.74 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays decreased their target price on Coca-Cola from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Cfra reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Truist Financial upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $71.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction of $7,179,360.66. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,987,070.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $1,321,606.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,968,095. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $7,179,360.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,987,070.92. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 203,748 shares of company stock worth $14,274,431. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.