Long-term investors have historically considered Coca-Cola as one of the most dependable stocks to invest in. The beverage behemoth hasn’t missed a dividend payment in decades, making it the bedrock blue-chip darling it’s best known for. Recent quarterly financial statements report that Coca-Cola is still knocking it out of the park with results. Its consistent results have made it a popular investment with buy-and-hold investors.
Just over the past year, for example, a $1,000 investment in Coca-Cola has shot up to nearly $1,195. That’s no small feat — a huge 19.5% growth. To us, that growth trend is pretty remarkable and pretty steady. Over the past five years, that same park investment would have skyrocketed to an estimated $1,728, representing a truly impressive increase of 72.8%. Coca-Cola’s reliable nature and fruitful opportunities are best apparent through the company’s 10-year lookback. That’s an increase of 116.3%, meaning a $1,000 investment has since grown to an aggregated $2,163.
That long-term growth story is even more compelling when considering 1988 as a starting point. Health care If you had invested $1,000 at the end of that same year, it would today be worth around $36,487. Wow! That’s a huge increase of 3534.2%! This performance would be very much in line with Warren Buffett’s investment approach. His investment company, Berkshire Hathaway, has held Coca-Cola stock since 1988. Buffett calls Coca-Cola one of his all-time favorite long-term investments, highlighting its consistent and predictable growth.
Coca-Cola’s financial health remains strong. During their first quarter, the company beat expectations with $11.22 billion in revenue, just beating analysts’ estimates of $11.14 billion. On the bottom line, Coca-Cola earned 73 cents per share, edging ahead of Wall Street predictions for 71 cents. As of the April 28 market close, their stock price is $71.79. This is a robust year-over-year real increase of about 16.3%.
The stock’s growth trajectory has almost doubled that of the S&P 500 over the same period. In comparison, the S&P 500 index rose by just 8.4% over that same time frame. This comparison highlights Coca-Cola’s appeal not just as a stable dividend payer but as a strong performer in the broader market landscape.
Investors run to Coca-Cola seeking out its strong past performance. Similarly, they love their powerful devotion to value – the value that’s realized in tangible dividends accompanied by steadfast performance. The company’s record of beating consensus revenue and earnings expectations speaks to its strength and durability in a very competitive market.