Coca-Cola Partners With Universal Music to Debut Real Thing Records

Coca-Cola (KO) has teamed up with Universal Music Group (UMGNF) to create a new record label named “real thing records.” This new record label is focused on highlighting voices around the world. As such, two of its first signees are French-New Zealand singer-songwriter Max Allais and Indian singer-songwriter and producer Aksomaniac Among.

Joshua Burke, Coca-Cola’s Global Head of Music & Culture, said that real thing records is a “long-term commitment to music—enabling us to reinvest in our programs, champion the next generation of talent, and stay rooted in what matters most: music and fandom.”

ICE Raids Hit Coca-Cola Sales

In other Coca-Cola news, the beverage company’s sales are being hit by ICE raids. These raids have led many Latino customers in the U.S. to shy away from public life, likely in an effort to avoid deportation. One consequence is fewer purchases of products favored by these consumers.

This might have some KO shareholders worried, but the company’s stock hasn’t been largely affected by the news. Instead, shares have only experienced a slight 0.1% drop today and remain up 16.65% year-to-date and 14.41% over the past 12 months.

Investors will also note that Coca-Cola has a strong lead over its closest rivals in the race to capture U.S. sales. The company’s titular soda held 19.1% of the market in 2024, with Keurig Dr Pepper’s (KDP) flagship soda being its closest rival with an 8.3% share of the market. Even if it loses some of this due to deportations, Coca-Cola will still likely remain the top carbonated beverage in the U.S.

Is Coca-Cola Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold?

Turning to Wall Street, the analysts’ consensus rating for Coca-Cola is Strong Buy, based on 15 Buy and a single Sell rating over the past three months. With that comes an average KO stock price target of $79.53, representing a potential 10.65% upside for the shares.

See more KO stock analyst ratings