Coca-Cola Stock (KO) Today: Price, Fresh Analyst Calls and Key News on November 21, 2025

Published: November 21, 2025 – All figures as of market trading on this date.

Coca-Cola stock today: near highs with fresh momentum

Coca-Cola stock (NYSE: KO) is trading around $73 per share in Friday’s session, up roughly 2–2.5% from Thursday’s close of $71.21. ^[1] That puts the beverage giant within touching distance of its 52‑week high of $74.38, and well above its 12‑month low of $60.62. ^[2]

Over the last year, Coca-Cola has delivered about 15% total shareholder return, including dividends, and is up just over 15% year to date, underscoring its role as a defensive winner in a choppy market. ^[3] At today’s price, the company’s market capitalization sits above $310 billion, with a trailing P/E ratio around 24x and a forward P/E just under 23x. ^[4]

Trading action today is being driven less by a single headline and more by a cluster of new research notes and news items, including:

• Fresh valuation work from Simply Wall St and AInvest
• A widely shared Motley Fool piece on Coca-Cola’s 100‑year‑old business model
• New institutional ownership disclosures and insider selling data
• A potential sale of the Costa Coffee chain, which Coca-Cola currently owns
• Legal and tax developments in Australia, plus automation and retail innovation updates

Below is a breakdown of the key news on November 21, 2025, and what it may mean for Coca-Cola stock.

1. Stock snapshot: price, valuation and consensus view

As of Friday’s trade:

• Price: about $73 per share mid-session
• Daily move: roughly +2–2.5% versus Thursday’s close of $71.21 ^[5]
• 52‑week range:$60.62 – $74.38 ^[6]
• Market cap: ~$314 billion ^[7]
• Trailing P/E: ~24x; forward P/E: ~22–23x ^[8]
• Dividend: annualized $2.04 per share, implying a yield around 2.8–2.9% at today’s price ^[9]

Analyst sentiment remains firmly positive. According to StockAnalysis, 13 analysts rate KO a “Strong Buy” with a 12‑month average target of $78.15, implying about 7% upside from current levels. ^[10] MarketBeat’s survey of Wall Street puts the consensus target slightly higher, around $78.43, with a broad “Buy” consensus. ^[11]

In short, Wall Street still likes Coca-Cola, but the stock is no longer cheap. That tension – between defensive quality and a full valuation – is exactly what today’s research pieces are focused on.

2. Valuation debate: is Coca-Cola overvalued after the rally?

Simply Wall St: defensive, solid – and about 5% rich

Simply Wall St’s new note, “Coca-Cola (KO) Valuation: Is the Defensive Giant Priced for Long-Term Growth?”, published today, frames Coca-Cola as a classic income stock that might be a bit ahead of itself. ^[12] Key takeaways:

• KO has gained about 15.15% year‑to‑date, with a one‑year total shareholder return near 15.04%. ^[13]
• Their main valuation model pegs fair value at roughly $67.50 per share, versus a recent price around $71–73, implying about 5–6% overvaluation. ^[14]
• On multiples, they note KO trades at 23.5x earnings, below the 26.5x average of a selected peer group but above the wider beverage industry’s 17.6x and their own “fair” P/E of 22.7x. ^[15]

The conclusion: investors are paying a premium for stability and brand power, which is reasonable, but leaves less room for error if sector sentiment cools or regulation around sugar and health tightens.

AInvest: premium multiple, but in line with Coca-Cola’s history

AInvest’s detailed piece, “Coca-Cola’s Share Price Surge: Is the Market Overlooking Long-Term Value or Overestimating Recovery Prospects?”, takes a more model‑heavy approach. ^[16] Their numbers:

• Forward P/E: about 22.13x, versus a non‑alcoholic beverages industry average of 17.8x.
• Current-quarter P/E:19.11x and price‑to‑book (P/B): 9.04x. ^[17]
• KO’s 10‑year average P/E is roughly 23.98x, so today’s valuation is high, but not out of character for the brand. ^[18]

On the growth side, AInvest models earnings per share climbing from about $2.99 in 2025 to $4.26 by 2030, a roughly 40% increase. Under that scenario, a P/E in the low‑20s could support a 2030 share price near $93, if the market maintains today’s premium multiple. ^[19]

However, they highlight several macro and FX risks:

• Currency headwinds could clip about 5 percentage points off full‑year results.
• Slower volume growth in some international markets and inflationary cost pressures make those long‑term EPS assumptions far from guaranteed. ^[20]

Overall, AInvest thinks Coca-Cola is “a buy, but not a no‑brainer” at current levels – attractive for long‑term dividend‑focused investors, but not a deep value play. ^[21]

Street targets: $75–83 price range from major banks

Several banks and brokers referenced in today’s coverage underscore that upside from here looks moderate rather than explosive:

• BofA Securities: price target raised to $80 with a bullish view on Coca-Cola’s “scarcity value” among large defensive names. ^[22]
• Piper Sandler: target lifted to $81, rating “overweight”. ^[23]
• TD Cowen: more cautious, trimming its target to $75 amid concerns about volumes in some international markets. ^[24]
• BNP Paribas: “Outperform” with an $83 target, highlighted in 24/7 Wall St’s Dividend Aristocrat screen. ^[25]

Put together, the Street is effectively saying: Coca-Cola deserves a premium, but most of the easy re‑rating has already happened.

3. Business model spotlight: “still winning after 100 years”

One of today’s most shared articles is a new Motley Fool analysis, “Why Coca-Cola’s Business Model Still Wins After 100 Years,” syndicated via FinViz and other platforms. ^[26] It doesn’t focus on today’s tick‑by‑tick trading, but on why KO’s fundamentals have proved so durable.

The piece calls out three structural strengths:

1. Asset‑light concentrate model
   Coca-Cola focuses on brand building and concentrate production, while its bottling partners own most of the heavy manufacturing and distribution assets. That setup has historically produced high operating margins, low capital spending, and robust free cash flow, even through inflationary periods. In Q3 2025, for example, Coca-Cola posted a 5% revenue increase and double‑digit operating income growth, despite global cost pressures. ^[27]
2. A distribution moat that’s hard to copy
   Through its bottlers, Coca-Cola maintains one of the largest beverage distribution systems in the world, spanning millions of outlets, coolers, fountains and vending machines. That hardware translates into long‑term shelf space and visibility that competitors struggle to dislodge. ^[28]
3. Pricing power from a global brand
   The article highlights Coca-Cola’s ability to drive price/mix growth above volume growth, a pattern confirmed in the company’s Q3 results, where price/mix added around 6% to revenue while unit case volume rose modestly. ^[29]

The bottom line of this analysis is straightforward: Coca-Cola’s model is built for endurance, not excitement. That’s precisely why investors are willing to pay a premium multiple for KO compared with the average consumer company.

4. Dividend story and the Buffett angle

Coca-Cola remains one of the market’s signature dividend names:

• The company has raised its dividend for 63 consecutive years, placing it firmly in the Dividend Aristocrat and Dividend King clubs. ^[30]
• At today’s price, the dividend yield sits around 2.8–2.9%, with an annual payout of $2.04 per share. ^[31]

A new 24/7 Wall St article, “5 Must-Own Dividend Aristocrats That Can Weather a Coming Big Sell-Off,” singles out Coca-Cola as one of five core holdings for investors seeking defensive income in a potentially volatile market. ^[32] Highlights from that piece:

• Coca-Cola’s dividend yield is cited at about 2.84%, with the company having boosted its dividend every year for 63 years. ^[33]
• The article notes that KO shares are up roughly 12.18% in 2025 so far, a solid performance for a consumer staples stock. ^[34]
• It also reminds readers that Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway owns roughly 400 million KO shares, making Coca-Cola one of Buffett’s longest‑held and best‑known positions. ^[35]

From an analyst perspective, the payout ratio sits around the mid‑60s on earnings, which is high but consistent with Coca-Cola’s mature, cash‑generative profile. ^[36] For investors, the signal is that KO is being treated as a dependable income vehicle with modest growth, not a high‑flyer.

5. Q3 2025 earnings: still the fundamental driver

Much of today’s valuation debate is anchored in the strong Q3 2025 results Coca-Cola reported on October 21. ^[37] Key numbers:

• Net revenues:$12.5 billion, up 5% year over year
• Organic revenue: up 6%, primarily driven by 6% growth in price/mix
• Global unit case volume: up 1%
• Reported operating income: up 59%, with comparable currency‑neutral operating income up 15%
• EPS:$0.86 (GAAP), up 30%; comparable EPS $0.82, up 6%, and ahead of the roughly $0.78 the market expected. ^[38]

Coca-Cola reaffirmed full‑year guidance for:

• 5–6% organic revenue growth, and
• around 3% growth in comparable EPS for 2025. ^[39]

These results are a big part of why KO has pushed back toward its highs: investors now see proof that Coca-Cola can raise prices, hold or grow volumes, and expand margins, even against FX and inflation headwinds.

6. Institutional flows and insider activity: mixed but mostly supportive

Large asset managers adjusting positions

Two MarketBeat pieces out today detail recent institutional moves in KO: ^[40]

• Franklin Resources trimmed its KO position by about 10.7% in Q2, selling just over 4 million shares but still holding around 33.96 million shares worth roughly $2.4 billion. Coca-Cola remains a top‑30 holding for the asset manager, so this looks more like position sizing than an outright exit. ^[41]
• Journey Strategic Wealth LLC increased its stake by 145.7% to 28,348 shares (~$2.0 million). ^[42]
• Neo Ivy Capital Management boosted its KO holdings by 128.9% to 26,758 shares (~$1.9 million), with several other wealth managers also modestly increasing positions. ^[43]

Across these filings, MarketBeat notes that around 70% of KO’s float is held by institutional investors and hedge funds, a sign of strong but not overly concentrated institutional ownership. ^[44]

Insider selling: notable, but small relative to KO’s size

On the insider side, recent Form 4 filings show executives realizing gains after the share price run‑up:

• COO Henrique Braun sold about 40,390 shares at an average price near $70.93, for proceeds around $2.86 million. ^[45]
• EVP Monica Howard Douglas sold 13,548 shares at roughly $69.93, cashing out about $947,000. ^[46]
• AInvest and other sources also highlight a recent sale by EVP Nancy Quan, who disposed of 31,625 shares (~$2.25 million) after exercising options. ^[47]

In total, insiders have sold approximately 225,000 shares over the last quarter, worth around $16 million, and now hold just under 1% of the company’s stock. ^[48] For a company of Coca-Cola’s scale, these sales are small in percentage terms and look more like portfolio diversification and compensation‑related selling than a strategic shift.

7. Legal and regulatory overhang: Australian tax case and activism

A shorter AInvest update today, “Coca-Cola Faces Legal Challenges as It Embraces Retail Automation,” flags legal risks that may not be front of mind for every shareholder. ^[49]

Key points:

• In Australia, the country’s High Court has allowed tax authorities to pursue new arguments in a long‑running transfer‑pricing dispute over Coca-Cola’s pricing arrangements with its local subsidiaries. The case could drag on into 2027, following a similar high‑profile loss for rival PepsiCo. ^[50]
• While the ultimate financial impact is unclear, it’s a reminder that global tax structures and intercompany pricing can pose material risks for multinationals.

Separately, a Mexican consumer advocacy group, El Poder del Consumidor, has called for the suspension of Coca-Cola’s Christmas caravans, arguing they should not go ahead this season. ^[51] Details on regulatory follow‑through are still limited, but the move underscores how public health and marketing concerns continue to create reputational and regulatory risk for sugary beverage brands.

For now, neither issue appears to be moving the stock, but both contribute to the risk section of any serious investment thesis on KO.

8. Automation and retail innovation: autonomous stores in Hungary

The same AInvest piece highlights a strategic move on the innovation front: ^[52]

• Coca-Cola HBC, a major Coke bottler, has partnered with Kende Retail Operation to open Hungary’s first autonomous retail store, with a plan to roll out 15 unmanned locations by 2026.
• These stores use technology that tracks customer movements and enables fully cashless, frictionless transactions, aligning with post‑pandemic trends and labor challenges. ^[53]

While small financially, this initiative signals that Coca-Cola and its bottlers are leaning into automation and data‑rich retail formats, which could enhance category insights, promotional efficiency and margin structure over time.

9. Strategic portfolio move: potential sale of Costa Coffee

A new Benzinga‑syndicated article, “If Luckin Makes A Move For Coca Cola’s Costa, Starbucks Could Face A Serious Challenge,” focuses on Coca-Cola’s Costa Coffee chain. ^[54]

According to that report:

• China’s Luckin Coffee is in talks with banks for a roughly $900 million loan to back a potential bid for Costa Coffee, which Coca-Cola is in the process of selling. ^[55]
• A deal could give Luckin more than 33,000 stores in about 50 markets, putting it closer to Starbucks’ global footprint. ^[56]

For Coca-Cola shareholders, the key implications are:

• A sale would simplify Coca-Cola’s portfolio, exiting an underperforming asset that hasn’t lived up to the expectations of the company’s $5 billion acquisition several years ago. ^[57]
• Proceeds could be redirected to core beverages, shareholder returns, or debt reduction, reinforcing the “back to core strengths” narrative that many analysts favor.

The market may not fully price in this upside yet, as the terms and timing of a potential deal remain uncertain.

10. System news: Coca-Cola Europacific Partners AGM update

Outside the listed KO entity itself, there is news from Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP), one of Coca-Cola’s largest bottlers. A London Stock Exchange and Refinitiv notice today details an “Update statement on 2025 AGM voting results.” ^[58]

The key point for KO investors:

• Shareholders narrowly but clearly approved a Rule 9 waiver related to share buybacks. The waiver allows CCEP to continue repurchasing shares without triggering a mandatory takeover offer from its major shareholder (Olive Partners) under UK takeover rules.
• CCEP has previously outlined significant capital return plans, including share repurchases, which indirectly support brand investment and system economics for Coca-Cola.

While this doesn’t directly change KO’s cash flows today, it reinforces the idea that the broader “Coca-Cola system” remains focused on returning capital and maintaining tight shareholder discipline.

11. How all of this fits together for Coca-Cola stock today

Pulling together today’s news and analysis:

• Fundamentals remain strong. Q3 results delivered solid revenue growth, margin expansion, and an earnings beat, and management is still guiding to mid‑single‑digit organic growth for the full year. ^[59]
• Valuation is full but not extreme. KO trades at a low‑to‑mid‑20s P/E, above sector averages but in line with its own decade‑long history. Third‑party models suggest the stock may be 5–6% above some fair‑value estimates, but Street targets still imply mid‑single‑digit upside plus the dividend. ^[60]
• Income and defensive appeal are intact. With a ~2.8–2.9% yield and one of the most consistent dividend records in the market, KO continues to function as a core defensive holding for many portfolios, including Berkshire Hathaway’s. ^[61]
• Risks are real but manageable. Tax disputes, sugar‑related activism, FX headwinds and legal challenges in markets like Australia all represent downside risk, but none currently look existential. ^[62]
• Ownership dynamics send a balanced signal. Institutions remain heavily invested, some large managers are trimming on strength, others are adding, and insiders are selling in amounts that look consistent with normal compensation and diversification rather than broad abandonment. ^[63]

For long‑term, income‑oriented investors, today’s news flow largely reinforces the existing thesis: Coca-Cola is a high‑quality, cash‑generative, brand‑driven compounder, likely to keep paying and growing its dividend, but unlikely to be a bargain at current prices.

For short‑term traders, the setup is different: KO is near its 52‑week high, options implied volatility is modest, and recent articles frame the stock as “strong business, fair‑to‑rich entry point” rather than a mispriced opportunity. ^[64]

As always, whether Coca-Cola stock fits your portfolio depends on your time horizon, risk tolerance, income needs and diversification, and this article should be treated strictly as information, not investment advice.

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