The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Shares Sold by State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System

State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lessened its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 0.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,343,558 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,500 shares during the period. Coca-Cola accounts for approximately 0.6% of State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System owned about 0.10% of Coca-Cola worth $269,431,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the 1st quarter valued at about $77,000. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 16.7% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 12,227 shares of the company’s stock valued at $758,000 after acquiring an additional 1,754 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in Coca-Cola by 41.4% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 149,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,255,000 after acquiring an additional 43,680 shares during the period. Ergoteles LLC increased its stake in Coca-Cola by 385.3% during the first quarter. Ergoteles LLC now owns 19,032 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,180,000 after acquiring an additional 15,110 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in Coca-Cola by 11.9% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 2,840,557 shares of the company’s stock valued at $176,115,000 after purchasing an additional 301,804 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com started coverage on Coca-Cola in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 28th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. Wedbush boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. Finally, HSBC decreased their price target on Coca-Cola from $77.00 to $74.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.33.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of KO opened at $58.44 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.14. The Coca-Cola Company has a 1 year low of $54.01 and a 1 year high of $64.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $252.71 billion, a PE ratio of 24.05, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.55.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 26th. The company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.06. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 23.81% and a return on equity of 43.06%. The company had revenue of $12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.74 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.70 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 15th will be issued 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 of this dividend is Thursday, September 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 75.72%.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other news, SVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,984,378.78. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO John Murphy sold 156,290 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.10, for a total transaction of $9,705,609.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 228,830 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,210,343. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 27th. The shares were 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 owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,984,378.78. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 227,364 shares of company stock valued at $14,122,016. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Coca-Cola

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.