Coca-Cola Buys Stake in Sports Drink Maker Backed by Kobe Bryant

Coca-Cola Co. agreed to buy a minority stake in Bodyarmor, a sports-drink maker whose backers include former basketball star Kobe Bryant, in a further move to diversify beyond sugary, fizzy beverages.

Coke will become the second-largest shareholder in closely held Bodyarmor after co-founder and Chairman Mike Repole, according to a statement Tuesday. Financial terms of the deal, which could allow the soft-drink giant to eventually take control of Whitestone, New York-based Bodyarmor, were not disclosed.