Coca-Cola posted stronger-than-expected earnings in its new CEO's first quarter

The beverage company raised its full-year earnings forecast after posting $12.5 billion in revenue and 86 cents in adjusted earnings per share

2 min readUpdated April 28, 2026

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Both profit and sales came in ahead of what Wall Street had anticipated when Coca-Cola $KO posted its first-quarter 2026 results. Adjusted earnings landed at 86 cents per share against a consensus estimate of 81 cents, while net revenues of $12.47 billion cleared the $12.24 billion forecast, per CNBC.

The results mark the first quarterly report under CEO Henrique Braun. "We've had a strong start to the year," Braun said in a statement. "Our performance this quarter reflects our unwavering focus on staying close to the consumer, executing locally and managing complexity."

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Net revenues grew 12% year over year. Organic revenues, a non-GAAP measure, rose 10%, driven by an 8% increase in concentrate sales and 2% growth in price/mix. Global unit case volume grew 3%, led by China, the U.S., and India.

Earnings per share rose 18% to 91 cents on a reported basis, while comparable EPS on a non-GAAP basis grew 18% to 86 cents. Operating income grew 19%, and operating margin expanded to 35.0% from 32.9% in the prior year, the company said.

By segment, North America unit case volume grew 4%, driven by Trademark Coca-Cola $KO and water, sports, coffee, and tea. Asia Pacific posted 5% unit case volume growth across all beverage categories, though comparable currency neutral operating income declined 17% in that region, primarily due to higher input costs and marketing investments. Europe, Middle East and Africa and Latin America each posted unit case volume growth of 2% and 1%, respectively.

Coca-Cola Zero Sugar grew 13% globally, with gains across all geographic operating segments. Water grew 5%, and tea grew 8%.

The company also raised its full-year earnings outlook. The revised full-year guidance calls for comparable EPS to climb 8% to 9% off a 2025 base of $3.00, a step up from the previous 7%-to-8% range. The company left its organic revenue growth target of 4% to 5% intact.

In premarket trading, shares ticked up 1% on the news.

Coca-Cola posted stronger-than-expected earnings in its new CEO's first quarter

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