Coca‑Cola (KO) EVP Beatriz Perez Exercises Options, Sells Shares

What Happened Beatriz R. Perez, Executive Vice President of The Coca‑Cola Company, exercised a total of 36,326 option-derived shares (15,000 on Feb 25 and 21,326 on Feb 26) and concurrently sold the same 36,326 shares in open‑market transactions. The exercises cost about $1.63M in aggregate (listed as $681,525 and $948,474), and the sales generated gross proceeds of about $2.93M (listed as $1,209,000 and $1,722,075). The filing also shows a grant/award of 39,517 derivative shares on Feb 26 and certain derivative disposals at $0 (likely tax withholding).

Key Details

• Transaction dates and prices:
  • Feb 25, 2026: Exercised 15,000 shares @ $45.44 (acquired, $681,525) and sold 15,000 shares @ $80.60 (disposed, $1,209,000).
  • Feb 26, 2026: Exercised 21,326 shares @ $44.48 (acquired, $948,474) and sold 21,326 shares @ $80.75 (disposed, $1,722,075).
  • Feb 25, 2026: Disposal of 15,000 derivative shares @ $0 (likely tax withholding).
  • Feb 26, 2026: Grant/award of 39,517 derivative shares @ $0 (acquired) and disposal of 21,326 derivative shares @ $0 (likely tax withholding).
• Aggregate amounts: total sale proceeds ≈ $2,931,075; total exercise cost ≈ $1,629,999; net difference ≈ $1,301,076 (approx).
• Grants and vesting: Footnotes indicate the exercised options were from prior option grants (see F2/F4), and the Feb 26, 2026 grant is under the 2024 Equity Plan with vesting schedules noted in the filing (F3).
• Other items: Shares credited to the reporting person under the Company 401(k) Plan are noted (F1). Footnote F5 clarifies each hypothetical share equals one common share; F7 references the filing date context (as of Feb 26, 2026).
• Timeliness: The Form 4 was filed Feb 27, 2026 for transactions on Feb 25–26, 2026 — the filing appears timely (no late‑filing indication in the provided data).

Context

• This pattern — exercising options and immediately selling the resulting shares — is commonly a cashless exercise to realize gains, cover exercise costs and tax withholding; the filing shows separate zero‑price disposals consistent with shares withheld for taxes. The new grant of 39,517 derivative shares/options will vest per the schedule in the filing (see F3). These transactions are routine insider liquidity events and are factual disclosures of trades, not statements of future company performance.