ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. Acquires 6,120 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,345,087 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,120 shares during the period. Coca-Cola comprises approximately 3.5% of ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $83,745,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the third quarter worth about $18,383,000. Balentine LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 92.4% during the 3rd quarter. Balentine LLC now owns 28,493 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,048,000 after purchasing an additional 13,685 shares during the period. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 104.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 116,214 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,351,000 after purchasing an additional 59,503 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC lifted 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 purchasing an additional 8,499 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 850,802 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,122,000 after purchasing an additional 46,541 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were 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 directly owns 342,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,933,220.38. This represents a 22.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on KO. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. TD Cowen raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on Coca-Cola in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $74.00 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.13.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE:KO opened at $62.76 on Tuesday. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $57.93 and a one year high of $73.53. The company has a market cap of $270.34 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.61. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $62.69 and a 200-day moving average of $66.45.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. The firm 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%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.74 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.