QRG Capital Management Inc. Buys 17,828 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 375,266 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,828 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $26,967,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.8% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 47,562 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,910,000 after buying an additional 1,746 shares in the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 7.0% during the first quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 70,161 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,292,000 after acquiring an additional 4,618 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth approximately $1,513,000. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 3.0% during the first quarter. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. now owns 15,696 shares of the company’s stock worth $960,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 6.1% during the first quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 9,328 shares of the company’s stock worth $571,000 after acquiring an additional 535 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,968,095. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $15,968,095. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Lisa Chang sold 58,122 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.51, for a total value of $3,981,938.22. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 74,067 shares in the company, valued at $5,074,330.17. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 261,870 shares of company stock worth $18,256,369. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.3 %

Coca-Cola stock traded up $0.21 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $65.22. 1,117,389 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,199,576. The business has a fifty day moving average of $70.29 and a 200 day moving average of $66.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market cap of $280.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.86, a PEG ratio of 3.97 and a beta of 0.62. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $56.06 and a 12-month high of $73.53.

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

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued 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 2.97%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 80.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on KO. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Cfra reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Citigroup upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.80.

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.