First Western Trust Bank Buys 397 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

First Western Trust Bank lifted its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 1.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 40,184 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 397 shares during the quarter. First Western Trust Bank’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $2,493,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola in the first quarter worth $25,000. Freedom Wealth Alliance LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 62.5% during the first quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Group LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 51.5% during the fourth quarter. Retirement Group LLC now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. Barclays upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. HSBC reduced their price objective on Coca-Cola from $77.00 to $74.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 7th. Finally, Wedbush upped their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.33.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In related news, SVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.66, for a total transaction of $3,133,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,984,378.78. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, SVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.66, for a total value of $3,133,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,984,378.78. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO John Murphy sold 156,290 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.10, for a total value of $9,705,609.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 228,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,210,343. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 227,364 shares of company stock valued at $14,122,016. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Coca-Cola stock traded down $0.48 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $58.40. 3,846,726 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 12,868,524. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $60.67 and its 200-day moving average is $61.29. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $54.01 and a 12 month high of $64.99. The stock has a market cap of $252.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.23, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 26th. The company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.06. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 43.06% and a net margin of 23.81%. The company had revenue of $12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.74 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.70 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.63 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 14th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 75.72%.

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.