Is Coca-Cola Still an Elite Dividend Stock? Here’s What the Numbers Say
Coca-Cola just extended a dividend streak that spans six decades, but a surging stock price and a tight payout ratio raise real questions about whether this legendary income name still delivers for buyers entering today.
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Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO | KO Price Prediction) just sent another check to shareholders. The board declared a $0.53 per share quarterly dividend with an ex-date of September 15, 2026 and a payment date of October 1, 2026. That extends one of the longest dividend-growth records on the market. It also raises a fair question: does a legendary streak translate into a great dividend today? Here is how the payout scores on five measures.
1. Growth Streak: A+
Coca-Cola paid $8.8 billion in dividends during 2025 and, on the company’s own math, extended its consecutive annual increase streak past six decades. The quarterly rate has climbed from $0.41 in 2020 to $0.53 in 2026. Few Dividend Kings can match that consistency.
2. Current Yield: C+
The trailing yield sits at roughly 2.32%, based on a $2.08 trailing payout and a share price of $88.85. That is above the S&P 500 average, but it is a byproduct of price appreciation working against income buyers. KO is up 27.57% year to date and 31.19% over the last year. New money buys less yield than it did in December.
3. Recent Growth Rate: B
The 2025 to 2026 hike, from $0.51 to $0.53, is a step down from the double-digit raises Coca-Cola delivered decades ago. It is roughly in line with the pace since 2020 and consistent with management’s comparable EPS growth guidance of 9 to 10% for 2026. Reliable, not thrilling.
4. Payout Ratio: B-
2025 EPS came in at $3, against a forward annualized dividend of $2.12 per share. That is a payout ratio in the high 60s. Management can support it, but the cushion is thinner than income investors sometimes assume, and it leaves less room for buybacks even with a $5.2 billion repurchase authorization outstanding.
5. Cash Flow Coverage: B
2025 operating cash flow was $7.408 billion against capital expenditures of $2.112 billion and dividends of $8.779 billion. Free cash flow did not fully cover the payout last year. The 2026 outlook improves the math sharply: management guides to free cash flow of roughly $12.4 billion, and CFO John Murphy noted net debt leverage of 1.4 times EBITDA, below the 2 to 2.5 times target range. First-half free cash flow was approximately $6.9 billion, tracking that guide.
Final Grade: B+
The streak is untouchable, the balance sheet supports it, and the 2026 cash flow ramp resolves last year’s coverage gap. What KO does not offer is a high starting yield or fast growth. Investors weighing whether a 60-year raiser still earns a spot in the income sleeve can compare it against the rest of the club in our free Dividend Kings report, which ranks ten of them by valuation right now. Watch the pending 11th Circuit IRS decision and the CCBA divestiture closing, either of which could shift capital allocation ahead of the next dividend declaration.
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Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics. Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications. A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.
