The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.

Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 11,611 shares of the company’s stock after selling 486 shares during the period. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $834,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. New Millennium Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Hara Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $36,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total value of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at $21,933,220.38. The trade was a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at $15,968,095. This represents a 7.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 303,748 shares of company stock worth $20,677,431. Corporate insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com cut Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Cfra reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.36.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 1.3 %

KO stock opened at $61.73 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $56.70 and a 12 month high of $73.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $265.92 billion, a PE ratio of 25.51, a P/E/G ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.61. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $68.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.48.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $11.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.74 earnings per share. Coca-Cola’s revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio 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.