Fox Run Management L.L.C. Takes $1.40 Million Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 22,521 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,402,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 74,163,187 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,617,400,000 after buying an additional 11,569,920 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in Coca-Cola by 13.7% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 92,961,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,680,205,000 after purchasing an additional 11,206,995 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $500,192,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 14.5% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,615,428 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,271,885,000 after purchasing an additional 4,013,996 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 92,957,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,664,005,000 after purchasing an additional 2,966,964 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

Coca-Cola Stock Down 1.6 %

Coca-Cola stock opened at $68.58 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $295.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.76, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.57. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $57.93 and a 52-week high of $73.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.03. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $67.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $66.52.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.04. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 45.37%. Equities analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.97%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio is presently 82.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Bruno Pietracci sold 19,058 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.56, for a total transaction of $1,344,732.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Henrique Braun sold 25,277 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.47, for a total value of $1,806,547.19. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 52,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,749,745.02. The trade was a 32.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 313,423 shares of company stock valued at $22,263,071 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on KO shares. TD Cowen upgraded Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $73.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Coca-Cola presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.24.

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.