Form 4: Coca-Cola CEO James Quincey Executes Pre-Arranged Stock Option Exercise and Share Sale

Coca-Cola Chairman and CEO James Quincey completed a series of pre-planned transactions on May 30, 2025, involving the exercise of stock options and the subsequent sale of common stock under a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Summary

• On May 30, 2025, James Quincey, Chairman and CEO of The Coca-Cola Company (KO), exercised employee stock options to acquire a total of 266,403 shares of common stock.
• These options were exercised at a price of $43.515 per share.
• Concurrently, Mr. Quincey sold 266,403 shares of common stock at weighted average prices ranging from $72.00 to $72.24 per share.
• The sales were executed pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 trading plan, which was established on February 28, 2025.
• Following these transactions, Mr. Quincey directly beneficially owns 342,546 shares of Common Stock.
• Additionally, Mr. Quincey indirectly beneficially owns 44,678 shares through his wife, 8,158 shares through a 401(k) Plan, and 34,189 hypothetical shares through a Supplemental 401(k) Plan.

Sentiment

Score: 5

Explanation: The sentiment is neutral. The transactions are routine for an executive's compensation and liquidity management, especially given they were executed under a pre-established 10b5-1 trading plan. They do not signal new positive or negative information about the company's performance or outlook.

Positives

• The exercise of stock options indicates that the executive found value in exercising the options at the stated price, suggesting a belief in the underlying stock's value.
• The transactions resulted in a significant profit for the executive, as shares acquired at $43.515 were sold at approximately $72 per share.

Negatives

• The sale of a substantial number of shares by a top executive, even if pre-planned, can sometimes be perceived negatively by investors as it reduces the executive's direct equity stake in the company.

Future Outlook

NA

Industry Context

This filing details an individual executive's stock transactions and does not provide broader industry context or trends. It is specific to The Coca-Cola Company's executive compensation and insider trading disclosures.

Related Party Transactions

• Indirect beneficial ownership of shares by Mr. Quincey's wife and through company-sponsored 401(k) and Supplemental 401(k) plans are disclosed, which are standard related party disclosures for executive compensation.

Stakeholder Impact

• Shareholders: The sale of shares by a key executive, even if pre-planned, might lead to minor speculation, but the 10b5-1 plan mitigates concerns about discretionary selling based on insider information. The executive retains significant direct and indirect ownership.
• Employees: No direct impact on employees is indicated by this filing.
• Customers/Suppliers/Creditors: No direct impact on these stakeholders is indicated by this filing.

Key Dates

Recommendation

Keywords

Coca-Cola, KO, James Quincey, SEC Form 4, insider trading, stock options, share sale, 10b5-1 plan, executive compensation, beneficial ownership