Empower Advisory Group LLC Grows Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Empower Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 2.5% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,106,778 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 26,475 shares during the quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $79,533,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $18,383,000. Balentine LLC increased its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 92.4% during the 3rd quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 28,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,048,000 after buying an additional 13,685 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 457,782 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,895,000 after buying an additional 21,005 shares during the period. United Bank lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 65.4% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 80,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,813,000 after acquiring an additional 31,979 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisor Resource Council purchased a new position in Coca-Cola in the third quarter worth approximately $769,000. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on KO shares. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. StockNews.com lowered Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $71.80.

Insider Activity 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 shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total transaction of $7,179,360.66. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,987,070.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,987,070.92. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 40,334 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.54, for a total transaction of $2,804,826.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 74,067 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,150,619.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 303,748 shares of company stock worth $20,677,431 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $63.21 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $69.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.53. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $56.60 and a twelve month high of $73.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The company has a market capitalization of $272.30 billion, a PE ratio of 26.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.85 and a beta of 0.61.

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

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.07%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 80.17%.

Coca-Cola Company 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.