Proficio Capital Partners LLC Grows Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 9,001.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 675,057 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 667,640 shares during the quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $42,029,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $18,383,000. Balentine LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 92.4% in 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 period. Rice Partnership LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Rice Partnership LLC now owns 102,746 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,397,000 after acquiring an additional 6,793 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 104.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 116,214 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,351,000 after acquiring an additional 59,503 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 87.7% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 18,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,132,000 after acquiring an additional 8,499 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. DZ Bank raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.24.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.5 %

Coca-Cola stock opened at $71.20 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $306.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.82, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.53. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $57.93 and a 12 month high of $73.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. Equities analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.59%.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total value of $3,882,079.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 13,445 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $961,317.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 94,676 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,769,334. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 232,646 shares of company stock worth $16,515,469 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

About Coca-Cola

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.