Old North State Trust LLC Reduces Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Old North State Trust LLC trimmed its stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,606 shares of the company’s stock after selling 618 shares during the period. Coca-Cola comprises 1.1% of Old North State Trust LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Old North State Trust LLC’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $1,337,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $407,000. Naples Global Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 26,403 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,692,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 79,242 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,167,000 after acquiring an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Gradient Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 69.7% during the 2nd quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 452,944 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,830,000 after acquiring an additional 185,976 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Coca-Cola by 8.8% during the 2nd quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 15,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $986,000 after acquiring an additional 1,247 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coca-Cola news, CEO James Quincey sold 100,000 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total transaction of $6,403,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 342,546 shares in the company, valued at $21,933,220.38. This trade represents a 22.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.97% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on KO. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of Coca-Cola to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Coca-Cola from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Coca-Cola from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $68.00 to $70.00 in a report on Thursday. Finally, Cfra reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.50.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KO opened at $63.84 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $65.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $275.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The Coca-Cola Company has a 52 week low of $57.47 and a 52 week high of $73.53.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.03. Coca-Cola had a net margin of 22.45% and a return on equity of 44.01%. The business had revenue of $11.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.61 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.74 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a dividend of $0.485 per share. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

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.