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Published on October 26, 2007
The
Coca-Cola Company
One
Coca-Cola Plaza
Atlanta,
Georgia
Carol
Crofoot Hayes
Associate
General Counsel & Secretary
ADDRESS
REPLY TO
P.O.
Box 1734
Atlanta,
Georgia 30301
404
676-5622
FAX:
404 676-8409
October
26, 2007
Ms.
Ellie
Quarles
Special
Counsel
United
States Securities and Exchange Commission
100
F
Street, N.E.
Washington,
D.C. 20549-3561
RE: The
Coca-Cola Company
Definitive
Proxy Statement on Schedule
14A
Filed
March 9, 2007
File
No. 1-02217
Thank
you for your letter of August 21,
2007 concerning the Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A filed on March
9,
2007 by The Coca-Cola Company (the “Company”). We have responded to
each of your comments below. To facilitate your review, we have
included in this letter the captions and numbered comments from your letter
and
have provided our responses immediately following each numbered
comment.
The
Compensation Committee, page 19
1.
|
We
note that Towers Perrin assists the compensation committee with its
responsibilities and that it gathers and analyzes data. Please
clarify the role of the compensation consultant in determining or
recommending the amount and form of executive or director compensation
and
discuss fully the material elements of the instructions or directions
to
the consultant with respect to the performance of its duties under
the
engagement. See Item 407(e)(3)(iii) of Regulation
S-K.
|
Response:
As
noted
on page 37 of the Definitive Proxy Statement, the primary role of Towers Perrin,
as consultant to the Compensation Committee during 2006, is to gather and
analyze data related to market practice. In particular, as requested
by the Compensation Committee, the compensation consultant provides relevant
comparative market data, provides objective data to assist in the selection
of
our peer group of companies, and comments on compensation
proposals. Towers Perrin did not determine or recommend the
exact
amount and form of executive compensation. Towers Perrin has not and
did not in 2006 play any role in determining the amount or form of Director
compensation.
1
The
Compensation Committee has a written engagement letter with Towers
Perrin. Under the terms of this engagement letter, the consultant
reports directly to the Chairman of the Committee, the Committee determines
the
scope of requested services, and the Committee has the sole authority to hire,
fire, and approve fee arrangements for the consultant’s work.
We
will
continue to detail in future filings the compensation consultant’s involvement
with our executive compensation program to the extent it is material to an
investor’s understanding of our executive compensation program.
Approval
of Related Person Transactions, page 24
2.
|
Please
expand the definition of “related person” to include your executive
officers and their immediate family members. See Instruction
1.a.i. and iii. to Item 404(a) of Regulation
S-K.
|
Response:
In
future
filings, we will include executive officers and their immediate family members
in the definition of “related person.” Based on our review, there
were no transactions involving our executive officers or their immediate family
members subject to disclosure under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K during
2006.
3.
|
Please
disclose whether your policies and procedures for approving related
person
transactions are in writing and, if not, how such policies and procedures
are evidenced. See Item 404(b)(1)(iv) of Regulation
S-K.
|
Response:
Our
policies and procedures regarding related person transactions are in writing
in
the Committee Charter for the Committee on Directors and Corporate
Governance. In addition, these policies are discussed in our Code of
Business Conduct. These documents can be found on the Company’s
website, www.thecoca-colacompany.com, under the Investors
section. In future filings, we will specifically state that these
policies and procedures are in writing.
Director
Compensation, page 26
4.
|
You
specify a performance goal for the compensation plan for non-employee
directors and indicate that you assess earnings per share growth
“after
considering items impacting comparability.” Please discuss
whether you have established in advance the types of items that will
be
considered to determine whether earnings per share have increased
or
otherwise indicate how these adjustments will be
made.
|
2
Response:
Under
The
Compensation Plan for Non-Employee Directors, the types of items that would
impact comparability are established in advance, at the time the performance
target for the three-year period is set by the Board of
Directors. For the 2006 – 2008 performance period, the
calculation of earnings per share growth is adjusted for significant structural
changes, accounting changes, and non-recurring charges and gains. The
Audit Committee must approve and certify any adjustments. These
adjustments are intended to provide a consistent year-to-year
comparison. In future filings, we will identify the types of
potential adjustments that are applicable to each three-year performance
period.
5.
|
Please
clarify the effect, if any, on the vesting of awards to a director
if the
director does not continue as a board
member.
|
Response:
If
a
Director does not continue to serve as a Director, the share units credited
to
his or her account for each performance period in progress are prorated based
on
the amount of time in the performance period he or she served as a
Director.
The
share
units do not vest upon termination of service as a Director. No payment is
made
unless the performance measure is met over the original performance
period. The prorated payment, if any, is made at the same time as any
payment to the other Directors. This provision is
expressly set forth in Section 4.4 of The Compensation Plan for Non-Employee
Directors, which was filed with the Commission on a current report on Form
8-K
on April 5, 2006.
We
did
not address this provision in the description of The Compensation Plan for
Non-Employee Directors in our Definitive Proxy Statement since no Director
who
participated in this plan terminated service as a Director in
2006. Consequently, we did not believe that a description of the
provision was material to an understanding of the plan. In future
filings, we will describe this provision in the discussion of the
plan.
Compensation
Discussion and Analysis, page 29
6.
|
Please
expand your reasons for paying a certain level of base salary to
explain
how “internal equity” is taken into account to adjust for annual increases
and discuss the extent to which it is considered in setting the initial
level of base salary for named executive officers. Clarify
whether it is your goal to set base salary at a certain multiple
of the
salary of a specified type of employee. You also state that the
compensation committee considers market data and affordability for
the
company when determining base salary. Please discuss whether
you consider total salary to be paid to the named executive officers
when
determining whether the base salary levels are affordable for the
company. If so, discuss what total base salary level has been
determined to be affordable for the
year.
|
3
Response:
The
Compensation Committee seeks to balance the use of external data and internal
data in its decision-making process to ensure that we are paying our employees
comparable amounts for comparable work. Internal equity is one factor
that is considered in this process. Our objective is to ensure
that employees with similar responsibilities, experience and historical
performance are rewarded comparably. For each position in the
Company, including the Named Executive Officers’ positions, we assign a job
grade based on job duties and responsibilities. Each job grade has a
salary range. When adjusting base salaries, annual increases are
awarded within a pre-established range based on an assessment of the employee’s
performance for the previous year. We take into consideration
experience and performance versus peers in comparable roles and we seek to
provide the highest performing employees the highest rewards.
We
do not
seek to set the base salary of any employee, including any Named Executive
Officer, at a certain multiple of the salary of a specified type of
employee.
Affordability
is one of many factors used in determining base salaries and annual
increases. What we pay our employees, including our Named Executive
Officers, eventually is factored into the price of our products. We
look at base salaries, annual incentive opportunities and long-term incentive
awards to understand whether the entire compensation package for employees,
including Named Executive Officers, is competitive and
affordable. Several other elements of compensation are driven by base
salary, so it is important to set the appropriate level of base
salary.
We
carefully consider external and internal data in setting the appropriate,
affordable level of compensation. The total base salaries disclosed
have been determined to be affordable. We are willing and able to
invest in employees, including Named Executive Officers, in order to deliver
results to shareowners. We consider this compensation an investment
and we manage this investment through our performance management system and
with
financial and individual performance objectives.
In
future
filings, we will continue to consider how best to disclose information material
to an investor’s understanding of our executive compensation programs, including
the role of internal equity and affordability.
4
Annual
Compensation, page 30
7.
|
You
have not provided a quantitative or qualitative discussion of the
2006
financial or other performance targets to be achieved for your named
executive officers to earn the annual incentive. You also have
not included the 2007 targets. See Instruction 2 to Item 402(b)
of Regulation S-K. Please disclose or, to the extent you
believe disclosure of these targets is not required because it would
result in competitive harm, provide us on a supplemental basis a
detailed
explanation under Instruction 4 to Item 402(b) of Regulation S-K
for this
conclusion. You indicate that you have exceeded the financial
performance target in each of the last three years for the annual
incentive, but you have not stated clearly how difficult it is to
achieve
the target level of performance. If disclosure of the
performance-related factors would cause competitive harm, please
discuss
how difficult it will be for the executive or how likely it will
be for
the registrant to achieve the target levels. Please see
Instruction 4 to Item 402(b) of Regulation
S-K.
|
Response:
We
did
not disclose the specific performance targets for the 2006 annual incentive
awards because we believe that to do so would result in competitive harm to
the
Company. We have adopted a principled approach to disclosure of
performance targets and carefully evaluate each plan to determine if disclosure
would result in competitive harm. Where we did not believe that
disclosure of targets would result in competitive harm, we disclosed the
specific targets. For example, on page 35 of the Definitive Proxy Statement,
we
disclosed the earnings per share performance targets applied to the performance
share units under the Company’s long-term incentive
program. Similarly, on page 26 of the Definitive Proxy Statement, we
disclosed the performance target for Director compensation.
For
the
2006 annual incentive awards, on page 32 of the Definitive Proxy Statement,
we
disclosed that the financial measures for the Company as a whole were volume
and
net income and, for operating units, volume and profit before
tax. These financial criteria are applied against internal business
plan targets that are set annually. These internal business plans are
highly confidential and reflect the internal aspirations for the Company as
a
whole and for particular geographic operating units. These business
plans do not constitute forecasts although, if disclosed, there is a risk that
they would be construed as forecasts.
While
information on volume, net income, and profit before tax is eventually
disclosed, our internal business plans and performance against those plans
are
never made public. Disclosure of the Company’s internal projections and our
performance against the business plans would allow competitors to understand
our
business priorities, areas of emphasis, investment strategies, and expectations
for particular geographic regions. Competitors and industry experts
may be able to deduce the investment required to deliver certain volume or
profit targets. Likewise, if we disclosed these targets
after-the-fact, competitors would have access to baseline information for future
projected growth. As an example, if competitors discovered that we
are aiming for a significant percentage increase in volume or profit in a
particular geographic area, this would provide competitors with highly valuable
information that would allow them to focus their competitive efforts against
the
Company in that area.
5
Importantly,
specific targets were also required for certain categories of products.
Disclosure of internal targets for a particular category of products would
provide our competitors with proprietary information on the Company’s
expectations about volume in that category of beverages and also information
on
where the Company is focusing its efforts. For example, if we
disclosed that we expect the volume of sparkling beverages to grow at a certain
percentage and still beverages to grow at a different percentage, competitors
would obtain information about the Company’s strategy related to those
products. In addition, this would provide competitors with
information on the Company’s prioritization of certain categories of
beverages.
Since
we
firmly believe that competitive harm would result if we disclose the specific
performance targets for our annual incentive awards, we disclosed the difficulty
of achieving the targets. We disclosed on page 32 of the Definitive Proxy
Statement that financial performance has exceeded the target in each of the
last
three years and also that the maximum has never been achieved. It is
important to note that, because this is an annual incentive plan, both the
range
of potential payouts based on the targets and the actual payouts are disclosed
in the same Definitive Proxy Statement. We disclosed in the 2006 Grants of
Plan-Based Awards table on page 51 of the Definitive Proxy Statement the
threshold, target and maximum payout of the annual incentive. The
actual payment amount disclosed on page 44 in column (g) of the 2006 Summary
Compensation Table for each Named Executive Officer can be compared against
this
range. In 2006, for the Named Executive Officers, the performance
targets for 2006 were exceeded, but the payouts were substantially below the
maximum amount. This demonstrates that the target level of performance is
achievable, as long as expected performance is attained, but the maximum payout
is very difficult to achieve. In the event additional disclosure is
material to an investor’s understanding of the executive compensation program,
we will include additional information in future filings on the difficulty
of
achieving the target and maximum amounts.
We
did
not provide information on the financial performance targets for the 2007 annual
incentive awards because, as set forth in Instruction 2 to Item 402(b) of
Regulation S-K, information for 2007 would have to be disclosed only if it
could
affect a fair understanding of the Named Executive Officer’s compensation for
the last fiscal year. Annual incentive award targets are set each
year. We do not believe that the targets for 2007 awards are relevant to a
fair
understanding of the annual incentive plan and the award payouts for
2006. Rather, as stated above, we believe historical results
provide an investor with more pertinent information regarding the difficulty
of
achieving the performance targets under the plan.
In
summary, we believe the information and explanation provided in the Definitive
Proxy Statement about the annual incentive plan was sufficient to provide an
investor with an understanding of the plan. Disclosure of the
specific targets would not materially increase an investor’s understanding of
the annual incentive program and would result in competitive harm.
6
8.
|
We
refer you to Securities Act Release 8732A, Section II.B.1. As
noted in that section, the compensation discussion and analysis should
be
sufficiently precise to identify material differences in compensation
policies for individual named executive officers. Mr. Isdell
received the highest salary of $1.5 million, almost two times the
next
highest salary, and a bonus of $5.5 million, which was more than
three
times the next highest bonus paid to any of the named executive
officers. Mr. Isdell was the only named executive officer to
receive stock and performance share units in 2006, which accounts
for a
significant amount of the compensation differences between him and
the
other named executive officers. However, you should supplement
the disclosure to explain further the reasons for the differences
in the
amounts of compensation awarded to the named executive
officers.
|
Response:
As
you
note, Mr. Isdell was the only Named Executive Officer to receive stock options
and performance share units in 2006, which accounts for a significant amount
of
the difference between Mr. Isdell’s total compensation and the total
compensation of other Named Executive Officers. The reason for this
was explained in detail beginning in the last paragraph on page 33 and
continuing on page 34 of the Definitive Proxy Statement.
Regarding
base salary, as we discussed on page 30 of the Definitive Proxy Statement,
the
process for determining base salary is the same for all employees, including
Named Executive Officers. The differences in base salary are a result
of external benchmarking and differences in the relative responsibilities of
each executive position. Mr. Kent, who has the second-highest base
salary, was promoted to his current position of President and Chief Operating
Officer on December 7, 2006. The increase to his base salary as a
result of this promotion was effective January 1, 2007 (see page 31 of our
Definitive Proxy Statement) and thus was not reflected in the 2006 Summary
Compensation Table. Prior to Mr. Kent’s promotion, the Company did
not have an executive in the position of President and Chief Operating
Officer. While Mr. Isdell’s salary was approximately twice that of
Mr. Kent in 2006, this difference is partly attributable to the fact that Mr.
Kent’s base salary did not reflect his new position until 2007.
Regarding
annual incentive, Mr. Isdell, given his role and responsibilities, is eligible
for a higher target incentive percentage than the other Named Executive
Officers. This target percentage is applied against his base salary,
resulting in a higher annual incentive amount. Mr. Isdell’s
leadership and strong personal performance in 2006 were also taken into account,
as described in detail on page 33 of the Definitive Proxy
Statement.
7
Finally,
Mr. Isdell’s total compensation is higher than other Named Executive Officers
because of the increase in the value of his future pension benefits, as
disclosed in column (h) of the 2006 Summary Compensation
Table. The reasons that his change in pension value is higher
than the other Named Executive Officers are explained in detail on pages 47,
57
and 58 of the Definitive Proxy Statement. Specifically, it was
disclosed on page 47 that “Mr. Isdell’s change in pension value is significant
because he was rehired after retirement at a substantially higher rate of
pay. As of December 31, 2006 he had 32.5 years of
service. As a result, each year Mr. Isdell works as Chairman and
Chief Executive Officer replaces an earlier year of lower eligible
compensation. This treatment applies to all plan
participants.”
While
we
believe that that the reasons for the material differences between the
compensation paid to our Named Executive Officers for 2006 were adequately
explained in our Definitive Proxy Statement, in future filings, we will continue
to ensure that any material differences in our compensation policies or pay
decisions are appropriately addressed to the extent that such information is
material to an investor's understanding of our executive compensation
program.
Annual
Incentive, page 31
Determination
Formula, page 33
9.
|
Your
disclosure regarding the annual incentive is lengthy and somewhat
difficult to understand without attaching values to the factors you
use. Please consider including an example of how you determine
the actual incentive award payout using actual dollar amounts, annual
incentive targets, financial performance percentages and personal
performance factors. Please consider including the amounts
awarded to the named executive officers and the various percentages
related to each named executive officer. Another
alternative could involve providing tabular disclosure with representative
amounts.
|
Response:
While
we
acknowledge that the discussion of our annual incentive award plan is fairly
complex, we do not believe that it is difficult to understand how the plan
operates without attaching specific values to each factor that is
used. On page 33 of the Definitive Proxy Statement, we set out the
formula in simple form. As described, the four primary factors
are:
·
|
Base
salary
|
·
|
Annual
incentive target percentage
|
·
|
Financial
performance percentage
|
·
|
Personal
performance percentage
|
In
addition, the annual incentive is increased or decreased based on performance
against pre-established inclusion and diversity goals. Of the
factors, we disclosed base salary, annual incentive target percentage and the
diversity multiplier. For the reasons discussed in our response
to Comment 7 above, we did not disclose the specific financial performance
percentage that was applied for the 2006 awards because we believe that to
do so
would result in competitive harm to the Company. In addition, we do
not believe it is required or appropriate to disclose the actual personal
performance percentage for each Named Executive Officer. We believe
that the disclosure of the amount of annual incentive paid in the 2006 Summary
Compensation Table, column (g) (see page 44 of the Definitive Proxy Statement),
along with disclosure of the range of possible awards in the 2006 Grants of
Plan-Based Awards, columns (c) – (e) (see page 51 of the Definitive Proxy
Statement) provides sufficient information to enable an investor to understand
the material terms of the annual incentive program.
8
However,
to provide further clarity in future filings, we will consider providing a
hypothetical example of how the annual incentive is calculated. We will also
consider using a table to present the factors that we disclose and look for
other ways to simplify the disclosure.
2006
Pension Benefits, page 57
10.
|
Please
clarify by footnote why the number of years of credited service differs
for Mr. Isdell between the retirement plan and supplemental plan,
on the
one hand, and the overseas plan, on the other. Based on the
disclosure you provided on page 39, the difference between the plans
is
not attributable to crediting Mr. Isdell with additional years of
service. Please clarify the reasons for the difference in years
of credited service.
|
Response:
As
of
December 31, 2006, Mr. Isdell had a total of 32.5 total years of service with
the Company and its affiliates that are eligible to be credited for pension
purposes. The Retirement Plan and the Supplemental Plan, on the one hand, and
the Overseas Plan, on the other hand, are separate plans that credit service
for
different periods. In Mr. Isdell’s case, 12.1 of his total 32.5 years
are credited under the Retirement Plan and the Supplemental Plan and the
remaining 20.4 years are credited under the Overseas Plan. There
is
not overlap in the years and no additional years of service are
credited. Together, the two plans credit his 32.5 years of
total service. In future filings, we will clarify the allocation of
his years of service between the various pension plans.
11.
|
Please
clarify the meaning of the data included in the mortality table column
of
the assumptions you have
provided.
|
Response:
The
probability of mortality (death) is one factor used to calculate the present
value of accumulated pension benefits. The mortality tables
referenced on page 58 of the Definitive Proxy Statement are standard published
tables. These references use the abbreviated name of the mortality
table that was used to determine the actuarial value of the accumulated benefits
shown in column (d) of the 2006 Pension Benefits Table on page 57 of the
Definitive Proxy Statement. The full name for "GAM 94" is 1994 Group
Annuity Mortality Table. The full name for "GAM 83" is 1983 Group
Annuity Mortality Table. The phrase “males and females” means that
gender-specific tables were used.
9
We
elected to disclose the assumptions for each plan in detail instead of providing
a cross-reference to the Company's audited financial statements because Mr.
Reyes, one of the Named Executive Officers, is located in Mexico and
participates in a local pension plan. The actuarial assumptions for
the local Mexico pension plan are different from the assumptions used for the
Company’s other defined benefit pension plans. We believe that
listing the specific actuarial assumptions provides an investor with more
accurate disclosure in this case. In future filings, we will clarify
the meaning of the data in the mortality table column.
2006
Nonqualified Deferred Compensation, page 59
12.
|
Please
include a footnote quantifying the extent to which amounts reported
in
column f previously were reported as compensation to the named executive
officer in the summary compensation table for previous
years. See the Instruction to Item
402(i)(2).
|
Response:
As
stated
on page 59 of the Definitive Proxy Statement, “All contributions by the Named
Executive Officers are voluntary elections to defer receipt of compensation
that
they were entitled to be paid in the current year.” In addition, we
disclosed on page 59 of the Definitive Proxy Statement that no Named Executive
Officer has ever received a Company contribution to the Deferred Compensation
Plan. Therefore, the entire amount in column (f) consists of base
salary or annual incentive payments, plus earnings, that would have been paid
to
the Named Executive Officer had he or she not elected to defer the
compensation. For 2006 contributions, this is disclosed in the
2006 Summary Compensation Table. For prior years’ contributions, this
would have been reported in the Summary Compensation Table for that year, if
the
individual was a Named Executive Officer.
In
future
filings, consistent with Question 10.01 of the staff’s Compliance and Disclosure
Interpretations, we will provide the necessary quantification in the footnotes
to this table.
13.
|
Please
disclose the measure for calculating interest or other plan earnings
(including the frequency in which selections may be changed), quantifying
interest rates and other measures applicable during your last fiscal
year. See Item 402(i)(3)(ii) of Regulation
S-K.
|
10
Response:
The
Deferred Compensation Plan does not provide or guarantee any specified rate
of
interest. As disclosed on page 59 of the Definitive Proxy Statement:
“The employee earns a deferred return based on deemed investments in mutual
funds selected by the employee from a list provided by the
Company. The investment risk is borne entirely by the employee. . .
. Gains and losses are credited based on the participant’s election
of a variety of deemed investment choices. Participants’ accounts may
or may not appreciate and may even depreciate depending on the performance
of
their deemed investment choices. None of the deemed investment
choices provide interest at above-market rates.” We believe
this is adequate disclosure of the method for crediting plan earnings and we
do
not believe disclosure of the actual funds and their individual returns provides
information that is material to an investor’s understanding of the Deferred
Compensation Plan. Such disclosure could be quite lengthy and would be more
relevant to the Named Executive Officer’s investment strategy than to an
understanding of the Deferred Compensation Plan. Aggregate earnings
for each Named Executive Officer are disclosed in the 2006 Nonqualified Deferred
Compensation table on page 59 of the Definitive Proxy
Statement. Participants may change their deemed investment elections
on a daily basis. In future filings, we will disclose that plan
participants may change investment elections on a daily basis.
In
connection with responding to your comments, we acknowledge that:
·
|
the
Company is responsible for the adequacy and accuracy of the disclosure
in
the filing;
|
·
|
staff
comments or changes to disclosure in response to comments do not
foreclose
the Commission from taking any action with respect to the filing;
and
|
·
|
the
Company may not assert staff comments as a defense in any proceeding
initiated by the Commission or any person under the federal securities
laws of the United States.
|
Please
direct any questions or comments concerning this letter to me at
404-676-5622.
Sincerely,
/s/
Carol Crofoot Hayes
Carol
Crofoot Hayes
Associate
General Counsel and Secretary
cc: E.
Neville Isdell, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
11