Boston Research & Management Inc. Sells 800 Shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Boston Research & Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 1.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 78,645 shares of the company’s stock after selling 800 shares during the period. Boston Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $5,005,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in Coca-Cola by 2.2% in the second quarter. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,871 shares of the company’s stock worth $437,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the period. Drive Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,824 shares of the company’s stock worth $630,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 3,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Liberty Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Coca-Cola by 3.7% in the second quarter. Liberty Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,319 shares of the company’s stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Finally, Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV raised its holdings in Coca-Cola by 0.4% in the second quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 42,407 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,699,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $71.62 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $69.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.31. 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 firm has a market cap of $308.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.93 and a beta of 0.60. The Coca-Cola Company has a fifty-two week low of $51.55 and a fifty-two week high of $73.53.

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

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a $0.485 dividend. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 77.60%.

Insider Activity at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, major shareholder Cola Co Coca sold 598,619 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $925.00, for a total transaction of $553,722,575.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,883,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,742,280,050. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 18,484 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.50, for a total value of $1,321,606.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,968,095. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Cola Co Coca sold 598,619 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction 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 owns 1,883,546 shares in the company, valued at $1,742,280,050. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 974,715 shares of company stock worth $579,704,927. 0.97% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on KO shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on Coca-Cola from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Coca-Cola presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.07.

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.