London, April 30, 2026, 11:05 BST
Unilever PLC plans to hike prices in certain markets and categories after cost inflation tied to the war ran hotter than anticipated — despite the Dove and Axe parent topping first-quarter sales estimates. Chief Financial Officer Srinivas Phatak told analysts those hikes would be rolled out “in small doses,” mostly during the second half. Nestle, Procter & Gamble, and Reckitt are contending with similar cost pressures. Reuters
The timing’s key here: Unilever is just starting to see volume growth again, after years when consumer-goods names pushed prices higher and saw buyers drift to budget brands. In the first quarter, underlying sales growth—excluding currency and portfolio effects—came in at 3.8%. Volume added 2.9% to that, price 0.9%.
The figures arrive as Chief Executive Fernando Fernandez pushes ahead with Unilever’s pivot toward a tighter lineup—zeroing in on beauty, wellbeing, personal and home care. Unilever struck a deal last month to merge its Foods segment with McCormick, pegging the division’s value near $44.8 billion. The transaction, pending signoff, is slated to wrap up by mid-2027.
Unilever left its 2026 guidance intact, sticking with projected underlying sales growth at the lower bound of its 4% to 6% multi-year target and seeing at least 2% in underlying volume growth. Turnover dropped 3.3% to 12.6 billion euros—sales gains and M&A effects were more than wiped out by a 7.7% currency drag.
Home Care led the pack, posting a 6.1% jump in underlying sales, nearly all of it on higher volume. Beauty & Wellbeing advanced 3.6%, boosted by Dove and Vaseline. Personal Care edged up 3.7%. Foods added 2.2%.
Consensus figures from the company were pegged at 3.6% for underlying sales growth—split evenly between volume and price at 1.8% each. What turned up: volume outperformed, pricing lagged. For investors, that shift carries more weight than the modest beat on the headline number, signaling buyers are picking up more goods, not just facing higher tags.
Unilever’s Fernandez pointed to a strong start this year, saying the group is pushing ahead to create a “simpler, sharper” business. India and Latin America, he noted, have been bright spots. Even with macroeconomic uncertainty, Fernandez said Unilever is sticking to its guidance. Unilever
RBC Capital Markets analysts James Edwardes Jones and Wassachon Udomsilpa said Unilever’s turnaround efforts in Home Care and Latin America “bore fruit.” Latin America posted 6.2% organic growth for the quarter. As for Home Care, all the gains came from higher volumes, the analysts noted, according to a Dow Jones-cited report. MarketScreener
India’s still a crucial swing market for the group. Hindustan Unilever, its local listed arm, posted an 18% jump in quarterly profit, though material cost inflation’s hovering around 8% to 10%. CFO Niranjan Gupta put the actual price hikes at just 2% to 5% so far. But according to consumer goods consultant Akshay D’Souza, both the unit and rivals are getting squeezed on margins—competition’s heated, and consumers aren’t letting them pass on the whole cost hit.
Unilever shares rose roughly 1.7% to 4,287 pence during the London morning session, Cboe Europe figures cited by MarketScreener show. Still, the stock remains off by over 11% since the year began.
Still, that pricing strategy isn’t without hazards. In its own filing, Unilever points to swings in raw-material costs, potential supply-chain snags, and uncertainty on execution tied to the McCormick deal as threats to its outlook. Raising prices could also undercut the volume rebound seen in the first quarter.
Unilever bumped its quarterly dividend 3% year-on-year and announced a 1.5 billion euro share buyback kicking off this Thursday, aiming to wrap up by July 6. The company’s message to investors: expect the usual—reliable demand, but brace for yet another price hike.
