Rakuten Securities Inc. Takes $341,000 Position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 5,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $341,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Castleview Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 4.4% in the first quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 3,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $246,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Enterprise Bank & Trust Co grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Enterprise Bank & Trust Co now owns 5,021 shares of the company’s stock valued at $296,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Elk River Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Coca-Cola by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Elk River Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,838 shares of the company’s stock valued at $639,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC grew its position in Coca-Cola by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC now owns 4,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $274,000 after buying an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Somerville Kurt F grew its position in Coca-Cola by 0.8% during the first quarter. Somerville Kurt F now owns 21,377 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,325,000 after buying an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. 70.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

KO traded down $0.08 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $58.06. 11,236,839 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,953,850. The firm has a market capitalization of $250.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The Coca-Cola Company has a one year low of $51.55 and a one year high of $64.99. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $59.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.52.

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

Coca-Cola Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.485 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.34%. This is a boost from Coca-Cola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Coca-Cola’s payout ratio is 78.23%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total value of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Nancy Quan sold 57,368 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.87, for a total value of $3,491,990.16. Following the completion of 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Quincey sold 247,188 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.94, for a total transaction of $15,063,636.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 442,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,968,753.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 375,407 shares of company stock worth $22,795,742. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on KO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Coca-Cola from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.18.

About Coca-Cola

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.