London, March 11, 2026, 15:50 GMT
Unilever PLC slipped 1.37% to 4,840 pence in London trading by 1546, having dipped as low as 4,824 pence earlier. Shares followed the FTSE 100 lower, with the index down 0.6%. Oil price volatility, driven by ongoing Middle East tensions, kept pressure on the market. 1
The timing isn’t great. Back in February, Unilever flagged that underlying sales growth for 2026 — excluding currencies and M&A — would probably come in at the lower edge of its 4% to 6% target, and that gains in operating margin would be limited. Now, with Brent crude climbing above $90 a barrel, holding that line won’t get any easier. 2
The stock hasn’t managed to claw back to its late-December highs, despite Unilever’s planned 1.5 billion euro buyback, set to kick off in the second quarter. As of Wednesday, shares still sat about 13% below the Dec. 19 peak of 55.42 pounds. “There are signs of progress at Unilever … however we think it will take time,” RBC Capital Markets analyst James Edwardes Jones wrote following the February update. 2
Tuesday gave markets a breather. London’s blue-chip index notched its sharpest daily gain in close to a year after U.S. President Donald Trump’s remarks sent oil tumbling almost 11%. But by Wednesday, the bounce was gone—Brent clawed back some losses and most FTSE 350 sectors slipped into the red. 3
Magnum Ice Cream Company wrapped up its separation from Unilever back in December. Fourth quarter numbers show North America sales rising just 2.8%, while Europe barely moved—up 0.1%. “Cost of living pressures continue to impact in developed markets,” said Quilter Cheviot analyst Chris Beckett. 4
Other consumer staples haven’t fared much better. Reckitt dropped over 6% last week, despite a sales beat, as vague margin and EPS forecasts took the spotlight. JPMorgan pointed to packed trades in defensive stocks—think Unilever, Nestle, the usual go-tos for risk-averse investors. 5
Late Tuesday, a regulatory filing revealed that Unilever handed out performance-share awards back on March 6 to several top executives—among them Home Care chief Eduardo Campanella, Personal Care boss Fabian Garcia, and Richard Slater, who heads up Research & Development. These transactions, the filing noted, took place off-market. 6
Unilever’s next move might hinge more on how it handles costs than regulatory filings. On Wednesday, Citigroup’s Beata Manthey flagged the threat to margins as supply-chain snags and pricier commodities bite—she called them “hard to protect” if input costs don’t ease. The company has already told investors to expect price hikes around 2% this year, lagging the average of the past ten years. That means the stock could take a hit if demand in the U.S. and Europe remains sluggish and energy costs climb. 7
