Key Points
- CFO John Murphy sold 99,437 shares on Feb. 25 at an average price of $80.42 for about $7.997M, trimming his stake by 19.5% to 410,550 shares (roughly $33.0M).
- Dividend increase: Coca‑Cola raised its quarterly dividend to $0.53 (from $0.51), payable April 1 with an ex‑dividend date of March 13, implying a $2.12 annual payout and ~2.6% yield.
- The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.58 (beating consensus by $0.02) with revenue of $11.82B (below estimates), set FY2026 guidance of 3.210–3.240 EPS, and retains a consensus Buy rating with an average target of $84.33.
CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) EVP Beatriz Perez sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.60, for a total value of $1,209,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 173,728 shares in the company, valued at $14,002,476.80. The trade was a 7.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.
CocaCola Stock Up 1.2%
Shares of NYSE:KO opened at $81.46 on Friday. CocaCola Company has a 1 year low of $65.35 and a 1 year high of $82.00. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $74.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $70.82. The company has a market capitalization of $350.32 billion, a PE ratio of 26.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.25.
CocaCola (NYSE:KO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $11.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.04 billion. CocaCola had a net margin of 27.34% and a return on equity of 41.31%. CocaCola's revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.55 earnings per share. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.210-3.240 EPS. Analysts forecast that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.
CocaCola Increases Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is an increase from CocaCola's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. CocaCola's dividend payout ratio is presently 67.11%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several brokerages recently issued reports on KO. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of CocaCola from $88.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Citigroup raised their price target on CocaCola from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of CocaCola from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of CocaCola from $77.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $84.33.
Read Our Latest Analysis on KO
CocaCola News Summary
Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Unusual call buying — Investors purchased ~61,806 call options on KO Friday (about 17% above a typical day), signaling short‑term bullish positioning that can amplify upside into upcoming catalysts.
- Positive Sentiment: Zacks raised near‑term and multi‑year EPS forecasts — Analysts lifted Q1/Q2 and FY2026–FY2028 estimates, nudging forward EPS momentum and supporting a higher valuation multiple for KO.
- Neutral Sentiment: Defensive rotation / momentum into blue‑chips — MarketBeat highlighted KO as part of a broader move into defensive, dividend‑paying names as tech cools; that thematic flow helps demand for KO but is macro‑driven. MarketBeat Week in Review
- Neutral Sentiment: Swire Pacific restructuring of its Vietnam Coca‑Cola stake — Corporate-level changes in regional ownership could alter local distribution/partner dynamics; impact on KO is indirect and longer term. Swire Pacific update
- Neutral Sentiment: Positive press on KO as a long‑running dividend name — Inclusion in lists of century‑plus dividend payers/reliable blue‑chips supports buy‑and‑hold interest but is a slow, steady demand factor. 247WallSt dividend article
- Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling — Several executives disclosed recent share sales (CFO John Murphy sold ~99,437 shares; EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 20,000; EVP Beatriz R. Perez sold multiple blocks). Large insider dispositions can weigh on sentiment even when company fundamentals remain intact. SEC filings: CFO Form 4 EVP Monica Form 4 EVP Beatriz Form 4
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KO. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in CocaCola by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 374,771,512 shares of the company's stock worth $26,200,276,000 after purchasing an additional 5,886,352 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of CocaCola by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 167,850,330 shares of the company's stock worth $11,734,417,000 after buying an additional 1,992,327 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of CocaCola by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 89,984,203 shares of the company's stock worth $6,273,037,000 after acquiring an additional 433,547 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in CocaCola during the fourth quarter valued at $3,865,807,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in CocaCola by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 40,289,857 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,816,697,000 after acquiring an additional 1,195,581 shares during the period. 70.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
CocaCola Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
The Coca‑Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a global beverage manufacturer, marketer and distributor best known for its flagship Coca‑Cola soda. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, the company develops and sells concentrates, syrups and finished beverages across a broad portfolio of brands. Its product range spans sparkling soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready‑to‑drink teas and coffees, and other still beverages, marketed under both global and regional brand names.
Coca‑Cola's brand portfolio includes widely recognized names such as Coca‑Cola, Diet Coke, Coca‑Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade and Dasani, and in recent years the company has expanded into the coffee and premium beverage categories through acquisitions such as Costa Coffee.
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