London, Feb 12, 2026, 08:18 (GMT) — Regular session.
- Unilever stock fell about 0.8% in early London trade after the group reported FY2025 results and guidance.
- Q4 underlying sales growth beat expectations, but Unilever warned 2026 growth should land at the low end of its target range.
- The company announced a new €1.5 billion buyback expected to start in the second quarter.
Unilever shares eased in early London trading on Thursday, down 0.8% at 5,278 pence by 0803 GMT after touching 5,360 pence at the open. The stock closed at 5,320 pence on Wednesday. (Share Prices)
The move lands as investors digest Unilever PLC’s first full-year scorecard since it spun off its ice cream arm, now The Magnum Ice Cream Company, in December. It is also one of the bigger early tests of chief executive Fernando Fernandez’s push to tilt the group toward higher-growth beauty and personal care.
Why it matters now: consumer staples have been leaning on price rises and mix to keep profits steady as demand cools in parts of Europe and the United States. That playbook is getting harder to run when shoppers trade down and retailers squeeze shelf space.
Unilever said fourth-quarter underlying sales growth — its organic measure that strips out currency swings and the impact of acquisitions and disposals — rose 4.2%, topping a company-compiled poll of analysts at 3.9%. It warned 2026 growth would come in at the bottom end of its 4% to 6% multi-year range as market conditions slow, even as annual underlying operating profit dipped 1.1% to 10.1 billion euros. (Reuters)
In its full-year statement, Unilever put 2025 underlying sales growth at 3.5% and forecast at least 2% underlying volume growth in 2026, while still flagging the low end of its target range. Turnover fell 3.8% to 50.5 billion euros, and underlying operating margin rose to 20.0% — up 60 basis points, or 0.6 percentage point. Unilever set a fourth-quarter interim dividend of 0.4664 euros a share and announced a fresh share buyback of up to 1.5 billion euros expected to start in the second quarter; Fernandez said “our sharper focus and disciplined execution underpin our confidence for 2026 and beyond.” (Unilever)
The near-term debate is less about whether Unilever can hit its range and more about what it takes to do it. Investors are watching volume — units sold — because price-led growth can fade quickly when promotions return and private labels bite.
The early share dip also reflects a familiar tension in big staples: buybacks help support earnings per share, but they do not fix a slow market. Traders will likely focus on how Unilever plans to keep marketing spend high while still widening margins, especially as the company points to softer conditions.
But the downside case is sitting in the emerging-market detail. In India, a key Unilever profit engine, its listed subsidiary Hindustan Unilever reported a 15% drop in quarterly profit on margin pressure and a one-off labour-code charge, pushing its shares more than 4% lower — a reminder that “volume growth” can come with a cost. (Reuters)
The ice cream separation is also still throwing off noise. Magnum reported its first results since the demerger, with full-year net profit down sharply as separation, restructuring and financing costs hit the numbers, even as it kept its 2026 outlook. (Reuters)
What’s next: investors will parse management’s webcast and any extra colour on U.S. demand, margin trade-offs and the pace of the buyback. The next scheduled catalysts are Unilever’s CAGNY Conference appearance on Feb. 17 and its Q1 2026 trading statement on April 30. (Unilever)
