Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Stock Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,089,351 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 52,550 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $130,083,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Coca-Cola by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC now owns 4,993 shares of the company’s stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Excalibur Management Corp boosted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Excalibur Management Corp now owns 29,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,831,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Wells Trecaso Financial Group LLC now owns 3,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 21,024 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,309,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO increased its position in Coca-Cola by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 39,198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,440,000 after buying an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total value of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 145,435 shares of Coca-Cola 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,324,191.46. The trade was a 29.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock worth $22,263,071. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

NYSE KO opened at $70.80 on Friday. 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 Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $57.93 and a 12 month high of $73.53. The stock has a market cap of $304.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.66, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The company’s 50 day moving average is $67.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.46.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 45.37% and a net margin of 22.59%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 82.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. TD Cowen raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $69.00 target price on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.24.

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.