Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Sells 6,186 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. trimmed its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 7.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 77,199 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,186 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $4,723,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tidemark LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth $28,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the first quarter worth $28,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on KO. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 price target on the stock. Argus lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.20.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

KO traded up $1.37 on Friday, hitting $69.33. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 22,514,775 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,301,018. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $64.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $61.76. The firm has a market cap of $298.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.59. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $51.55 and a 12 month high of $69.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.92% and a return on equity of 43.62%. The firm had revenue of $12.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $11.78 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.80%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.60%.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Cola Co Coca sold 598,619 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $925.00, for a total transaction of $553,722,575.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,883,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,742,280,050. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, major shareholder Cola Co Coca sold 598,619 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $925.00, for a total value of $553,722,575.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,883,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,742,280,050. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 8,874 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.31, for a total transaction of $561,812.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,129,621.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 879,375 shares of company stock worth $571,502,245. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.