Plato Investment Management Ltd Purchases 8,342 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Plato Investment Management Ltd raised its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 154,909 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,342 shares during the quarter. Coca-Cola accounts for about 0.9% of Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $9,860,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in KO. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the 4th quarter worth about $2,808,056,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 21.5% during 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 during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 during the period. Pathstone Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $193,342,000. Finally, Putnam Investments LLC increased its position in Coca-Cola by 32.8% during the 4th quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 12,032,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $709,051,000 after purchasing an additional 2,973,234 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $1,321,606.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,968,095. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 102,533 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.02, for a total value of $7,179,360.66. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,987,070.92. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total transaction of $1,321,606.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,968,095. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 974,715 shares of company stock worth $579,704,927. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Cfra reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Barclays boosted 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. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.73.

Coca-Cola Trading Up 0.9 %

KO opened at $71.41 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $307.77 billion, a PE ratio of 28.56, a P/E/G ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $51.55 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53. The company’s 50-day moving average is $68.28 and its 200 day moving average is $63.93.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $12.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.78 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

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 given a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 77.60%.

Coca-Cola Company 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.