Argent Advisors Inc. Sells 655 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Argent Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 54,432 shares of the company’s stock after selling 655 shares during the period. Coca-Cola makes up 1.4% of Argent Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Argent Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $3,465,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola in the 4th quarter worth about $410,000. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 24.7% in the 4th quarter. Beacon Pointe Advisors LLC now owns 450,523 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,549,000 after purchasing an additional 89,139 shares in the last quarter. Smart Money Group LLC increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 21.6% in the 4th quarter. Smart Money Group LLC now owns 4,932 shares of the company’s stock worth $291,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 13.4% in the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 12,621 shares of the company’s stock valued at $744,000 after buying an additional 1,495 shares during the period. Finally, Peddock Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Peddock Capital Advisors LLC now owns 31,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,876,000 after buying an additional 443 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Up 0.6 %

Coca-Cola stock traded up $0.42 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $72.47. The stock had a trading volume of 18,398,818 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,073,931. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.08. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $51.55 and a fifty-two week high of $72.57. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $66.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $312.20 billion, a PE ratio of 28.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.59.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 43.62% and a net margin of 22.92%. The firm had revenue of $12.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.68%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,482 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.95, for a total value of $1,274,333.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,398,603.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,482 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.95, for a total transaction of $1,274,333.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,398,603.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Cola Co Coca sold 598,619 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 1,883,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,742,280,050. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,074,910 shares of company stock valued at $585,972,318. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KO shares. Barclays increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Citigroup increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. StockNews.com cut Coca-Cola from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.73.

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.