Smith Moore & CO. Sells 1,577 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Smith Moore & CO. lessened its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 34,361 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,577 shares during the period. Smith Moore & CO.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $2,139,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Mainstream Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 41.9% in the fourth quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $73.18 on Friday. The Coca-Cola Company has a twelve month low of $57.93 and a twelve month high of $73.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The company has a market cap of $314.91 billion, a PE ratio of 29.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50 day moving average is $68.57 and its 200 day moving average is $66.47.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.79%. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. 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 report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 price target on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.24.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Nikolaos Koumettis sold 54,708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.96, for a total value of $3,882,079.68. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 246,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,520,662.64. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.01, for a total value of $10,327,339.35. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at $24,324,191.46. This trade represents a 29.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071. 0.97% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.