CRA Financial Services LLC Boosts Stock Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

CRA Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,636 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the period. CRA Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $761,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KO. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in shares of Coca-Cola during the 1st quarter valued at $77,000. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 16.7% during the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 12,227 shares of the company’s stock valued at $758,000 after purchasing an additional 1,754 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 41.4% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 149,275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,255,000 after purchasing an additional 43,680 shares during the period. Ergoteles LLC raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 385.3% during the 1st quarter. Ergoteles LLC now owns 19,032 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,180,000 after purchasing an additional 15,110 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 11.9% during the 1st 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.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In related news, SVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 50,000 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,984,378.78. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Coca-Cola 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 value of $3,133,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 143,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,984,378.78. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO John Murphy sold 156,290 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 2nd. The stock was 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 owns 228,830 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,210,343. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 227,364 shares of company stock worth $14,122,016 in the last ninety days. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of KO traded down $0.52 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $57.94. The stock had a trading volume of 55,727,509 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,157,437. The company’s 50-day moving average is $60.49 and its 200 day moving average is $61.24. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12-month low of $54.01 and a 12-month high of $64.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The company has a market capitalization of $250.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.55.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 26th. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.74 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.70 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 14th. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 75.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. HSBC decreased their price objective on Coca-Cola from $77.00 to $74.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 7th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 28th. StockNews.com began coverage on Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Wedbush upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 in a research note 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.33.

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.