AM Investment Strategies LLC Increases Stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

AM Investment Strategies LLC lifted its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 14.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,037 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,733 shares during the quarter. AM Investment Strategies LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,240,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of KO. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in Coca-Cola by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 80,448,083 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,503,484,000 after buying an additional 1,950,146 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 63,138,970 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,501,789,000 after purchasing an additional 2,464,618 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 44,913,068 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,514,234,000 after purchasing an additional 2,040,664 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 25,845,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,446,822,000 after purchasing an additional 1,963,963 shares during the period. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 16.4% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 13,804,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $813,523,000 after purchasing an additional 1,949,500 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

KO stock traded up $0.20 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $61.75. The stock had a trading volume of 19,043,521 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,033,869. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $60.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.76. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The company has a market cap of $266.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.59. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52-week low of $51.55 and a 52-week high of $64.69.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $10.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.68 billion. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.50% and a net margin of 23.42%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.45 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 78.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Barclays increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.09.

Insider Transactions at Coca-Cola

In other news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 223,330 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,594,097.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total transaction of $3,491,990.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 223,330 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,594,097.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 52,300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $3,138,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 143,383 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,602,980. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

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.