Coca-Cola Company (The) (KO) Stock Price & How to Invest

The Coca-Cola Company is the world's largest non-alcoholic beverage company, built around a portfolio of more than 200 brands sold in over 200 countries. Its lineup spans sparkling soft drinks (Coca-Cola, Sprite, Fanta), water and sports drinks (Dasani, smartwater, Powerade, BODYARMOR), juices and dairy (Minute Maid, Simply, fairlife), coffee (Costa), and tea. Coca-Cola operates primarily as a brand owner and concentrate maker: it sells concentrates and syrups to a global network of independent and company-affiliated bottlers, who add water and packaging and handle local distribution. This asset-light model keeps Coca-Cola's margins high and capital needs low while the bottlers carry the heavier manufacturing and logistics costs. The company makes money through the spread on concentrate sales plus brand licensing and marketing scale. Founded in 1886 and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Coca-Cola is a Dividend King with one of the longest continuous dividend-increase records of any public company, and a long-standing core holding of Berkshire Hathaway.

The numbers as of October 2026: trailing twelve-month revenue of about $50.1 billion and net income of about $14.3 billion, a profit margin near 29% and an operating margin near 35%. Full-year 2025 revenue was about $48.1 billion with net income of $13.1 billion, up from $10.6 billion in 2024. The most recent reported quarter (Q2 2026, ended July 3) delivered EPS of $0.97 against a $0.93 estimate, with revenue up about 6.7% year over year, extending a run of four straight quarterly EPS beats. The shares closed at $93.62 on October 16, 2026, up about 35% year to date and 38% over one year, close to the 52-week high of $94.10. On the same day, KFC was reported to be switching its fountain drinks from PepsiCo to Coca-Cola after roughly four decades with Pepsi, a notable foodservice win.

Coca-Cola faces secular pressure on sugary sodas from health trends, sugar taxes, and regulation in many markets. Heavy international exposure makes reported results sensitive to a strong US dollar, which can mask solid underlying growth. Slow overall organic growth means the stock trades like a bond proxy, vulnerable when interest rates rise. Valuation is now a risk in itself: after a ~35% gain in 2026 the shares trade near 28x trailing and 27x forward earnings, close to the mean analyst target of about $95, which leaves less room for a disappointing quarter. Total debt of about $44 billion is higher than cash of roughly $16 billion. Input-cost inflation (sweeteners, aluminum, packaging) and litigation or regulatory scrutiny over sugar and plastics are ongoing risks. Competition from PepsiCo, private label, and a long tail of niche beverage brands caps share gains in developed markets.

23 analysts publish price targets on KO, averaging $94.74 against a $93.90 price as of October 2026, or +0.9%. The published targets run from $75.00 to $104.00, a moderate spread, and the ratings split 19 buy, 4 hold, 1 sell. Over the last six months there have been 10 raises and 2 cuts among the published actions. A price target is what an analyst published on a date, not a prediction, and sell-side ratings skew positive across the whole market.

Read the full KO forecast and price target for the target table, the recent rating actions by firm, and how the consensus has shifted.

We give no verdict on Coca-Cola Company (The). Both cases are real, which is why the question is contested at all, so here is the strongest version of each.

The case for buying. Unmatched global brand and distribution. Coca-Cola's brand is among the most recognized in the world, and its bottling and distribution network reaches retailers, restaurants, and vending in over 200 countries. The most optimistic published target, $104.00, assumes this works close to its best case.

The case against. Coca-Cola faces secular pressure on sugary sodas from health trends, sugar taxes, and regulation in many markets. The most pessimistic target, $75.00, is roughly what KO is worth if this bites instead.

Read the full bull and bear case on KO, including what would have to change to break either one. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

No. Coca-Cola Company (The) (KO) has not split its stock in the last 10 years. That is a statement about the window we check rather than about the company’s entire history, so an older split is possible. It also matters less than it once did: fractional shares mean a high price per share no longer keeps smaller investors out, which removed most of the practical reason to split.

A simple financial snapshot. These are approximations and refresh quarterly; for current figures see Coca-Cola Company (The)'s investor relations page or your broker.

• Revenue (TTM): ~$50.1 billion
• Revenue growth (Q2 2026, YoY): ~+6.7%
• Operating margin: ~35% (high, a product of the asset-light concentrate model)
• Net income (TTM): ~$14.3 billion
• P/E (trailing / forward): ~28x / ~27x
• Dividend yield: ~2.3% ($2.12 annual)
• Dividend growth streak: 60+ consecutive years (Dividend King)
• Market cap: ~$403 billion

Coca-Cola trades at a premium to the typical staple, and the 2026 rally has stretched it: about 28x trailing and 27x forward earnings as of October 2026, with the yield compressed to about 2.3% from roughly 3% earlier in the year. The multiple embeds steady mid-single-digit organic growth and reliable cash returns, supported by four consecutive EPS beats. Q3 results on October 27 (consensus about $0.88 EPS on $12.9 billion of revenue) are the next test.

If you want KO exposure as part of a larger bundle rather than directly, these ETFs hold it meaningfully. Weights are approximate and refresh quarterly.

These are the investment theses KO naturally fits into. Each links to a full theme guide listing every other stock that belongs and the ETFs commonly used as a passive proxy.

Other names that sit close to KO: same theme, named as a direct competitor, or held beside it in the same funds. Each entry says which. Worth a look if you are thinking about diversification within a thesis rather than concentration on one ticker.

There are three common ways to get KO exposure. Buy shares (or fractional shares) directly at any major broker. Hold an ETF that includes it (HDV, SCHD, FDVV), which spreads the position across many companies. Or build it into a focused thematic portfolio, so KO sits alongside other stocks that express the same thesis.

Walnut takes the portfolio route. Describe a thesis where KO fits (for example “AI infrastructure” or “dividend-growth large-caps”) and the AI proposes 5 to 6 constituents with target weights. You review the plan and fund it through your own broker when you're ready.

New to this? Start with how to invest in stocks, see how to analyze a stock with AI, or compare the best AI stock analyzers.

Coca-Cola (KO) is a wide-moat, asset-light beverage compounder whose global brand and bottler network throw off large, predictable cash flow and steady mid-single-digit organic growth. In a portfolio it behaves as a low-volatility, bond-proxy income anchor, valued for its 60-plus-year dividend record and defensive stability rather than rapid expansion. After a ~35% run in 2026 it trades near 27x forward earnings with a yield of about 2.3%, richer than its usual range, and reports Q3 results on October 27.

Whether KO is worth buying today depends more on your time horizon and what you already hold than on any single call. We walk through valuation, what would have to go right, and the risks in is KO a buy or a sell?, and where the stock could go from here in the KO stock forecast.

For income investors, whether KO pays a dividend and how the payout looks is covered in does KO pay a dividend? And to weigh KO against a peer, read the full side-by-side comparisons: KO vs COST and KO vs JNJ.