ATLANTA — The Coca-Cola Company reported a 12% increase in first-quarter net revenue to $12.5 billion and raised its full-year guidance, Chief Executive Officer Henrique Braun announced in a late-April earnings call. Organic revenue rose 10%, earnings per share grew 18%, and global unit case volume increased 3%, led by the United States, China and India.

"We've had a strong start to the year," Braun said during the 30-minute call. Operating margin expanded to 35.0% from 32.9%, and free cash flow reached $1.8 billion in the quarter.

The company is projected to generate more than $50 billion in revenue for the full year and delivers 2.2 billion servings a day across 32 billion-dollar brands, including Coke, Diet Coke, Coke Zero Sugar, Sprite, Fanta, Minute Maid, Powerade and Smartwater.

Braun became CEO four months ago, stepping up from chief operating officer when James Quincey moved to chairman. The first-quarter report was among his early public financial disclosures since taking the role.

The results were posted against a backdrop of category pressures. Soda volumes have declined in the United States for two decades, GLP-1 medications are reshaping appetite and beverage consumption, and health regulators have layered sugar taxes onto the beverage category. Trade tariffs have impacted costs across aluminium, freight and concentrate. The company has not launched a major new product in years.

Coca-Cola's 70/20/10 budget allocation remains in place, as does the discipline of organizing brand architecture under the Coca-Cola masterbrand and the philosophy of local execution paired with global platforms. Investment behind the "Real Magic" platform, launched in 2021, continues in 2026.

The dividend is in its 64th consecutive year of annual increases, a streak that dates to when Lyndon Johnson was president.