Horan Capital Advisors LLC. Lowers Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Horan Capital Advisors LLC. reduced its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 28.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,667 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,450 shares during the period. Horan Capital Advisors LLC.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $228,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of KO. Mainstream Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. MilWealth Group LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $43,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO opened at $72.29 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $310.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.27, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $64.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $57.93 and a 12 month high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (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%. On average, research analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 82.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on KO shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Coca-Cola from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. DZ Bank raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.24.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the company’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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 246,909 shares in the company, valued at $17,520,662.64. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total value of $1,344,732.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 232,646 shares of company stock worth $16,515,469. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.