Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Has $10.97 Million Holdings in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO)

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its position in The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) by 7.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 179,354 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 11,716 shares during the quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s holdings in Coca-Cola were worth $10,973,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in KO. ZRC Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Coca-Cola by 213.3% in the fourth quarter. ZRC Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Tidemark LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Coca-Cola during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Coca-Cola during the first quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coca-Cola in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Coca-Cola Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KO traded up $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $65.29. 13,775,672 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,171,430. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $63.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $61.30. The Coca-Cola Company has a 12 month low of $51.55 and a 12 month high of $65.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $281.27 billion, a PE ratio of 26.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.59.

Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.02. Coca-Cola had a return on equity of 42.74% and a net margin of 23.41%. The business had revenue of $11.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $11.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.68 EPS. Coca-Cola’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that The Coca-Cola Company will post 2.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Coca-Cola Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were given a dividend of $0.485 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.97%. Coca-Cola’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Coca-Cola

In other Coca-Cola news, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 8,874 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.31, for a total value of $561,812.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,129,621.78. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 8,874 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.31, for a total transaction of $561,812.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 33,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,129,621.78. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold 57,298 shares of Coca-Cola stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $3,551,903.02. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 167,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,358,962.93. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 841,588 shares of company stock worth $568,972,027. 0.97% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America boosted their target price on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Coca-Cola in a report on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $72.00 price objective for the company. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Coca-Cola from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Coca-Cola from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $70.00.

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.