Coca-Cola Company (KO) is preparing for an initial public offering of its Indian bottling subsidiary. The beverage giant is targeting proceeds of about $1B and an equity valuation near 10 billion dollars for Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages. The deal is likely to be one of India’s largest consumer IPOs of the year.
As part of the IPO runup, Coca-Cola (KO) has appointed a syndicate of investment banks, including Kotak, HDFC Group, and Citibank, to run the process, with eyes on a summer 2026 listing, although management is prepared to push the deal into 2027 if unseasonal rains again dent peak summer beverage demand and weaken sentiment.
The initial public offering is expected to be largely a secondary sale by existing shareholders rather than a sizable primary issuance, following Coca-Cola’s (KO) earlier sale of a 40% stake in Hindustan Coca-Cola Holdings, HCCB’s parent, to the Jubilant Bhartia Group.
Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages is the largest bottling partner of Coca-Cola (KO) in India, responsible for manufacturing, packaging, selling, and distributing many of Coca-Cola’s (KO) trademark beverages. It operates around 15 plants and, together with independent bottlers, serves a broad retail network with brands such as Coca-Cola, Thums Up, Sprite, Maaza, Kinley, Dasani, Georgia Coffee, and Schweppes.
Shares of Coca-Cola (KO) dipped 0.5% in premarket trading on Thursday.