CocaCola (NYSE:KO) CEO James Quincey Sells 250,688 Shares

CocaCola Company (The) (NYSE:KO) CEO James Quincey sold 250,688 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.14, for a total value of $19,839,448.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 278,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,013,186.70. This represents a 47.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

James Quincey also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, February 3rd, James Quincey sold 337,824 shares of CocaCola stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.10, for a total value of $26,046,230.40.

CocaCola Stock Down 1.5%

KO traded down $1.21 during trading on Thursday, hitting $76.89. The stock had a trading volume of 8,683,775 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,255,748. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $71.01. The company has a market capitalization of $330.68 billion, a PE ratio of 25.29, a PEG ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.46. CocaCola Company has a twelve month low of $65.35 and a twelve month high of $82.00.

CocaCola (NYSE:KO) 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. CocaCola had a return on equity of 41.31% and a net margin of 27.34%.The company had revenue of $11.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.55 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. CocaCola has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.210-3.240 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that CocaCola Company will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

CocaCola Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from CocaCola’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. CocaCola’s payout ratio is 67.11%.

Trending Headlines about CocaCola

Here are the key news stories impacting CocaCola this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Coca‑Cola increased its quarterly dividend (new $0.53/share), reinforcing its income‑stock appeal and supporting long‑term demand from yield‑oriented investors. Valuation Check / Dividend Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Major brokerages are largely positive: multiple firms have recent “Buy”/”Overweight” ratings and raised targets (consensus buy view), which helps underpin the stock. Brokerage Coverage Summary
• Positive Sentiment: Coca‑Cola is being highlighted in dividend‑king/retirement roundups as a stable long‑term income holding, likely supporting defensive fund flows. Fool: Dividend Kings
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks and other screens have KO trending among retail readers — this raises visibility but is more of a watchlist signal than an immediate catalyst. Zacks Trending Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Coca‑Cola FEMSA (KOF) proposed a quarterly dividend — positive for the Coca‑Cola system but limited direct impact on KO PLC’s valuation. KOF Dividend Proposal
• Neutral Sentiment: Mention in pieces about Berkshire Hathaway and portfolio reshuffling keeps KO on investors’ radars but is informational rather than company‑specific news. MarketBeat: Berkshire Review
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling: CFO John Murphy sold 72,449 shares (~$5.8M at ~\$80.52), cutting his holding materially; large executive sales are a primary driver of the stock’s intraday weakness. SEC Form 4
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage raising questions on earnings quality and decentralization of the business suggests elevated execution and margin scrutiny that could pressure sentiment. Seeking Alpha: Earnings Quality
• Negative Sentiment: Short‑term underperformance vs. peers noted by MarketWatch could attract relative‑performance selling from active managers. MarketWatch: Underperformance

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on CocaCola from $77.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of CocaCola from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of CocaCola from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $83.00 price target on shares of CocaCola in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CocaCola presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $84.33.

Institutional Trading of CocaCola

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KO. Anfield Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of CocaCola by 438.8% during the 4th quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 361 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of CocaCola during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CocaCola during the third quarter worth $27,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in CocaCola during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in CocaCola by 1,081.8% in the 4th quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 390 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.26% of the company’s stock.

About CocaCola

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.