- Unilever’s first quarter underlying sales saw a growth of +4.4%, beating the estimated +3.59% growth.
- In particular sectors, the company performed better than anticipated:
- Beauty and Wellbeing sales rose by 7.4%, surpassing the estimated 6.08%.
- Personal Care sales increased by 4.8% against an estimate of 4.6%.
- Home Care sales saw a 3.1% growth against the estimated 1.6%.
- Nutrition sales came in at +3.7%, slightly below the estimate of 4%.
- Ice Cream sales increased by 2.3%, beating the estimate of 1.25%.
- Unilever’s underlying volume rose by 2.2% (estimate was 1.57%), and their underlying pricing went up by 2.2%, beating the 1.99% estimate.
- The company posted a revenue of EU14.96 billion, surpassing the estimate of EU14.7 billion.
- Detailed breakdown of revenue indicates all sectors exceeded their estimates (except Nutrition that slightly missed the mark, but still showed growth):
- Beauty and Wellbeing revenue = EU3.19 billion (estimate EU3.06 billion).
- Personal Care revenue = EU3.41 billion (estimate EU3.38 billion).
- Home Care revenue = EU3.19 billion (estimate EU3.1 billion).
- Nutrition revenue = EU3.39 billion (estimate EU3.38 billion).
- Ice Cream revenue = EU1.79 billion (estimate EU1.73 billion).
- The dividend per share was EU0.4268.
- Unilever’s 2024 outlook remains unchanged, expecting an underlying sales growth of 3% to 5% and a slight improvement in the underlying operating margin. The company is expecting volume growth to contribute more to this.
- The first quarter saw improved volume growth driven by Power Brands which witnessed a sales growth of 6.1%. Power brands including Dove, Knorr, Rexona and Sunsilk performed exceptionally well.
- In conclusion, as per accumulated ratings, Unilever stock has 12 buys, 10 holds and 4 sells.
Unilever PLC on Smartkarma
Analyst coverage of Unilever PLC on Smartkarma reveals insights from Garvit Bhandari regarding the company’s strategic move to separate its ice cream business. In a bullish sentiment, Garvit highlights Unilever’s plan to spin off its ice cream segment into a separate publicly listed entity by the end of 2025. This decision aligns with Unilever’s strategy to focus on higher growth, higher margin businesses, including beauty and wellbeing, personal care, home care, and nutrition. The separation aims to enhance capital allocation and resource efficiency, enabling Unilever to prioritize investment in sectors with significant scaling potential.
A look at Unilever PLC Smart Scores
| Factor | Score | Magnitude |
|---|---|---|
| Value | 2 | |
| Dividend | 4 | |
| Growth | 4 | |
| Resilience | 2 | |
| Momentum | 5 | |
| OVERALL SMART SCORE | 3.4 |
Smart Score is a compound score for the Company indicating its overall outlook. It is derived by taking an equally weighted average of underlying Factor scores computed by Smartkarma
Unilever PLC, a leading manufacturer of consumer goods such as food, detergents, fragrances, and personal care products, is projected to have a favorable long-term outlook based on the Smartkarma Smart Scores. With strong momentum and high scores in dividend and growth, Unilever PLC appears to be well-positioned for future success. Despite average scores in value and resilience, the company’s robust performance in momentum indicates positive market sentiment and potential for continued growth.
As a dually-listed company with UNA NA, Unilever PLC‘s overall outlook remains promising, buoyed by high scores in dividend and growth, indicating a solid foundation for future expansion and shareholder returns. While facing some challenges in value and resilience, the company’s exceptional momentum score suggests a positive market perception and resilience in the face of potential obstacles, positioning Unilever PLC as a competitive player in the consumer goods industry.
Summary of the company: Unilever PLC manufactures branded and packaged consumer goods, including food, detergents, fragrances, home, and personal care products. Dually-listed company with UNA NA.
Disclaimer: This article by Smartkarma is general in nature and based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Note that our articles may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
While all reasonable care has been taken in the preparation, Smartkarma makes no assurance about the accuracy of any generated data or content. All content is indicative only and should be independently checked for accuracy and confirmed before use. Smartkarma accepts no responsibility for any loss or damage caused as a result of any inaccuracy or error within the Lab online tools or generated data.
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