Unilever Share Discussion Threads

[philanderer] 27/10/2023 16:42

UBS raises Unilever price target to 3,290 (3,190) pence - 'sell'

or

Berenberg cuts Unilever price target to 5,110 (5,160) pence - 'buy'

[alotto] 27/10/2023 09:49

Go woke and go broke.

[philanderer] 27/10/2023 00:13

Unilever to retreat from woke agenda

[giltedge1] 26/10/2023 17:27

IC Comment today, rated a buy! All Regions grew except Europe.

Unilever’s (ULVR) volumes fell by 0.6 per cent in its third quarter as consumers continue to plump for cheaper own-brand alternatives in Europe.

Markets on the continent are most exposed to the nutrition and ice cream categories, which as management pointed out “remain inflationary and are more impacted by consumer downtrading”. This led to a 10.7 per cent volume drop in Europe. The Americas and Asia Pacific divisions both saw volumes rise around 2 per cent.

Revenue came in at €15.2bn (£13.3bn) at the Magnum and Marmite seller, with underlying sales growth of 5.2 per cent against last year. The personal care and beauty and wellbeing divisions posted the quickest revenue growth on a divisional level, while the Americas led the way on a geographic basis. Encouragingly, total volumes rose at the beauty and wellbeing, personal care, and home care divisions.
Although the rate of price increases has fallen at the company – underlying price growth was 5.8 per cent in the quarter compared with 8.1 per cent over nine months – the percentage of its business winning market share fell to 38 per cent from 41 per cent in the previous quarter. This, again, highlights downtrading.

New chief executive Hein Schumacher laid out an “action plan” intended to drive growth, which includes a greater focus on Unilever’s 30 brands which contribute around 70 per cent of total revenue. The company is targeting underlying sales growth in a range of 3-5 per cent, an expansion of margins, and a return on invested capital in the mid-teens.
Schumacher wants to "selectively optimise the portfolio" and has ruled out "major or transformational acquisitions". Good news for shareholders tired of acquisition errors. The company said it has made a deal to sell Dollar Shave Club, which it bought for $1bn in 2016, for an undisclosed amount.

Elsewhere, the company confirmed that retiring chief financial officer Graeme Pitkethly will be replaced by Fernando Fernandez, the current president of the beauty and wellbeing division.

The shares are rated at 17 times forward consensus earnings, a discount to the five-year average of 19 times. We remain bullish on the company for its defensive brands, dividend growth, and free cash flow prospects. Buy.

[mastey] 26/10/2023 16:37

To be honest I am surprised it did not fall further. Well I guess it can follow through lower tomorrow. Very poor trend and now no real ability to raise prices much further.I nearly sold earlier in the year and taken a nice profit

[philanderer] 26/10/2023 16:19

Bernstein reiterate its Sell rating. The target price is still set at GBX 3800.

RBC confirms his opinion on the stock and remains Neutral. The target price is unchanged at GBX 4300.

The analyst from JP Morgan, Celine Pannuti, maintains his advice to sell. The target price is unchanged and still at GBX 3900.

[philanderer] 26/10/2023 11:19

No surprise , just mirroring RKT update yesterday.

[alotto] 26/10/2023 08:37

Suet, it says it all, innit?

[suetballs] 26/10/2023 07:55

Ah - we have a new Action Plan.
Suet

[philanderer] 20/10/2023 19:11

Trading update next thursday

[philanderer] 19/10/2023 11:26

Food and drink giant Nestle has revealed another fall in sales volumes as shoppers were put off by higher prices.

The KitKat and Cheerios maker said it increased its pricing by 8.4% for the first nine months of 2023 amid continued food inflation.

It said the increases helped drive organic growth of 7.8% over the period, but this came as the volume of products bought by customers fell by 0.6% as they pulled back following the price increases.

In the summer, Emmanuel Macron’s French government accused Nestle, and rivals such as Unilever, for refusing to pass lower costs onto families.

[giltedge1] 17/10/2023 10:01

Hello Alotto, yes key investor in Kraft Heinz, was consulted before bid. Anyway point being ULVR ticked all his criteria. Going forward looking for good Q3 2024, especially India & China, hope volumes maintained overall & price +10%.

[alotto] 17/10/2023 06:34

giltedge1 - was Warren Buffet involved in the Heinz Kraft acquisition?

[giltedge1] 15/10/2023 22:25

Hello Alotto, Sales growing strongly in India, Asia, South America & USA YTD 2023, where as other multi national consumer groups, reported negative volume growth.
If you want assurance, Ask Warren Buffett, he was part of group, willing to pay $143B a few years back, I understand he knows what makes a good investment.

[alotto] 13/10/2023 11:53

What's exciting about Unilever? What will it take to improve the share price and the dividend payout?
Apart from price hikes and some vague cost saving initiatives, I cannot see the management taking any actions for long term growth. Has Unilever hit the ceiling in its product segments? My answer is yes.
The fact that ULVR sought after an entry in the consumer health segment (the failed GSK deal) confirms my thesis. I doubt Unilever is looking to move into any other product segment, nor I see any new market for its portfolio that can offer significant growth, apart from India and the SE Asia. Anyone can prove me wrong?

[philanderer] 11/10/2023 10:03

RBC raises Unilever price target to 4,300 (4,200) pence - 'sector perform'

[llef] 10/10/2023 12:03

On the subject of consumer brands, Pepsi just reported qtly nos.

The company’s organic revenue, which excludes acquisitions and divestitures, climbed 8.8% in the quarter.

But PepsiCo’s volume, which strips out pricing and currency changes, fell again this quarter. Pepsi’s price hikes to mitigate inflation have weakened demand for its products.

Pepsi’s North American beverages unit reported volume declines of 6%. However, there were some bright spots. Gatorade, for example, saw double-digit revenue growth. The company also plans to relaunch Mountain Dew Baja Blast, a fan favorite flavor that is only available at Taco Bell.

The company’s North American food divisions performed better than the beverages unit did. Quaker Foods North America’s volume rose 1%, while Frito-Lay North America’s volume was flat. Quaker Foods’ brands also gained market share in key categories, like pancake mix and syrup, executives said in prepared remarks.

[essentialinvestor] 09/10/2023 15:21

Unilever provides detailed Q updates, none of which (to this point) validate the above.
That may change, but for now it continues to be a strong business.
If future trading says differently then I would reassess prospects.

[cynicalsteve] 09/10/2023 14:56

Times like these show us which companies own the valuable brands and which companies just assumed they did. I suspect that the number of genuinely valuable brands, the ones that people keep buying no matter what is happening in the world, is much smaller than we all thought. This is bad news for Unilever, the stock market and us.

[essentialinvestor] 07/10/2023 12:19

csmwssk, with respect that is too rudimentary a view. If you look at the H1 statement there was a marginal fall in volume, 0.3% from memory.

Yes given current inflation it makes the outlook challenging, however own label products are also increasing in price.
Consumers have plenty of choice between own label and brands, that's a positive development as brands can become complacent without a strong competitive environment.

[glavey] 07/10/2023 08:22

[2783]
To the contrary, people with reduced appetites may find they need to purchase less 'bulk' (volume), which would, like for like, reduce cost. But on a maintained budget would allow a more selective approach to spending and facilitate preferential choices. People like to treat themselves.

[csmwssk12hu] 06/10/2023 19:36

Raised prices to far, will lose or already lost market share, profits based on overcharging for their own stuff which people have now switched from, as volumes drop costs per item sold rise, squeezing margins so decision is raise prices more with less sales or cut prices with more sales, either way profits drop eventually, get your tin hats on.

[philanderer] 06/10/2023 15:27

Shareprice just hit a 12 month low.

[essentialinvestor] 06/10/2023 15:21

Tempted...but about everything getting cheaper.