Corbyn Investment Management Inc. MD Trims Stock Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Corbyn Investment Management Inc. MD trimmed its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 8.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,286 shares of the company’s stock after selling 321 shares during the period. Corbyn Investment Management Inc. MD’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth $2,808,056,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 21.5% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 49,297,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,016,023,000 after acquiring an additional 8,733,326 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 11,127.2% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,972,733 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,043,000 after acquiring an additional 4,928,441 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth $193,342,000. Finally, Putnam Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 32.8% in the fourth quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 12,032,095 shares of the company’s stock worth $709,051,000 after acquiring an additional 2,973,234 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Barclays upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Argus upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $70.73.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 19,304 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.44, for a total transaction of $1,224,645.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,168,055.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, major shareholder Cola Co Coca sold 598,619 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $925.00, for a total value of $553,722,575.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,883,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,742,280,050. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 19,304 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.44, for a total value of $1,224,645.76. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,168,055.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 1,074,910 shares of company stock valued at $585,972,318. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Performance

Shares of KO opened at $71.14 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52 week low of $51.55 and a 52 week high of $73.53. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $67.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.56. The stock has a market cap of $306.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.46, a PEG ratio of 4.05 and a beta of 0.60.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business posted $0.78 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.73%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is presently 77.60%.

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.