Coca-Cola is a dividend aristocrat.
Coca-Cola is a cult! This is also true for the Christmas truck of the beverage giant. Founded over 130 years ago, the soft drink manufacturer sells its drinks in more than 200 countries today and owns 17 beverage brands each with more than $1 billion in annual sales.
This makes Coca-Cola an undisputed number one among beverage manufacturers, which helped the company in the last quarters in an environment characterized by stronger inflation to introduce price increases. These in turn provided good figures despite difficult conditions.
Most recently higher sales and profits Coca-Cola increased net sales in the last quarter by 8% to $12 billion. This enabled the beverage giant to exceed analyst expectations by 5%. The increase in sales was mainly due to an increase in sales prices. On average, the company increased prices by 9%, but was still able to expand its market share.
The operating margin was 27.4% compared to 27.9% in the previous year. The company attributed the slight decrease in the margin mainly to currency fluctuations. Earnings per share increased 9% compared to the same period last year to $0.71.
In response to the strong quarterly performance, Coca-Cola has raised both its sales and earnings forecasts. The management expects a growth of 10 to 11% for the full year for sales. A 4% increase in earnings is expected.
Warren Buffett is a major shareholder in Coca-Cola The mix of a simple and consistently successful business model has already attracted a famous investor several decades ago: Warren Buffett. In 1988, Buffett bought the first package of shares worth $1 billion in Coca-Cola. The next package of shares followed in 1994 worth $300 million.
Buffett has thus spent a total of $1.3 billion on Coca-Cola shares. On the other hand, he has received a gross dividend of $736 million alone this year. Currently, Buffett holds 400 million shares of the beverage maker through Berkshire Hathaway. As a result, Coca-Cola was the fourth largest position in Berkshire Hathaway’s stock portfolio.
Four dividend payments per year Coca-Cola rewards loyal shareholders: The beverage giant from Atlanta pays out – as do most US companies – four dividends per year. The success recipe for shareholders: The dividend is steadily increased.
The almost unbelievable number: 2023 was already the 61st consecutive year in which Coca-Cola has increased its annual dividend. With this series, the soft drink manufacturer belongs to the best dividend payers in the world. Many small dividend increases benefit the shareholders.