London, July 7, 2026, 11:14 BST
- Unilever PLC LON:ULVR was up 3.05% at 4,695.75p, outpacing the FTSE 100’s 0.47% rise.
- Tuesday’s jump means the stock now sits about 10% below the median 12-month analyst target of 5,160.27p.
- Unilever’s Q2 and half-year numbers are set for July 28. In Q1, sales growth came mostly from higher volumes. Price growth cooled to 0.9%.
Unilever PLC LON:ULVR shares jumped more than 3% on Tuesday, outpacing gains on the FTSE 100 ahead of the consumer group’s half-year earnings later this month. Hargreaves Lansdown delayed data had Unilever at 4,695.75p, up 139p. The FTSE 100 was up 0.47% at 10,701.46.
The stock is now sitting about 9.9% below the median 12-month analyst target of 5,160.27p on Investors Chronicle, after starting the week with a 13.2% gap from Monday’s 4,557p finish. That shift puts pressure on the next set of results, since the story is looking cleaner but tighter—investors now have to bet on volume growth, emerging markets and buybacks, with less of a cushion from a cheap price.
| Market and forecast check | Latest / forecast | Gap from Tuesday price |
|---|---|---|
| Unilever trades at 4,695.75p, up 3.05% | 4,695.75p, +3.05% | Beats FTSE 100 by 2.58 points |
| FTSE 100 is at 10,701.46, adding 0.47% | 10,701.46, +0.47% | — |
| Median analyst price target sits at 5,160.27p | 5,160.27p | Up 9.9% |
| Top analyst call is 5,997.53p | 5,997.53p | 27.7% higher |
| Lowest analyst view is 3,801.86p | 3,801.86p | That’s down 19.0% |
| Trading Economics sees quarter-end at 4,534.07p | 4,534.07p | Off 3.4% |
| Trading Economics 12-month view is 4,285.74p | 4,285.74p | Down 8.7% |
Prices come from Hargreaves Lansdown, with analyst targets via Investors Chronicle. Model forecasts are from Trading Economics. All percentage gaps use these sources.
The real test is the type of growth. Unilever posted Q1 underlying sales growth at 3.8%, missing the 4.0% full-year consensus listed on its investor site. Q1 volume growth hit 2.9%, ahead of the 2.1% consensus. Price growth came in at 0.9%, less than half the 1.9% expected for the full year.
| Operating scorecard | Q1 actual | FY 2026 consensus / guide |
|---|---|---|
| Underlying sales growth | 3.8% | 4.0% consensus, company saying it expects at the low end of 4%-6% |
| Volume growth | 2.9% | 2.1% consensus |
| Price growth | 0.9% | 1.9% consensus |
| Underlying operating margin | Not in Q1 statement | 20.1% consensus, company guides to slight improvement |
| EPS growth | Not in Q1 statement | 3.4% consensus |
| Power Brands sales growth | 5.0% | Ran ahead of group in Q1 |
Unilever Chief Executive Fernando Fernandez said in the Q1 update the group started the year with “volume-led growth driven by our Power Brands.” The July 28 results will show if that volume stuck in Q2. In Q1, underlying sales were up 5.7% in emerging markets but gained just 1.0% in developed ones. Europe slipped 0.9%. Investegate
Cost is still a headwind. Unilever’s July pre-close aide-memoire quoted the CFO saying full-year inflation would land between €750 million and €900 million. About half of net inflation was set to come from Home Care, mostly in emerging markets. The memo also said the productivity program had hit €750 million in savings by the end of Q1, close to an €800 million goal.
The Unilever portfolio question is still open. In March, Unilever reached a deal to merge its Foods unit with McCormick & Company Inc NYSE:MKC. Unilever gets $15.7 billion in cash, and its shareholders will own 65% of the new company. RBC’s James Edward Jones said then the deal structure “did not strike us as a smooth way” to turn Unilever into a pure play in household and personal care. Chris Beckett at Quilter Cheviot said the tie-up was “transformational for McCormick, but incremental for Unilever.” Reuters
Some investors flagged execution risk earlier. Barclays analyst Warren Ackerman said Fernandez should have “another year under his belt” before considering a food split. W1M portfolio manager Tineke Frikkee called the food demerger “not straightforward”—pointing to tax, scale and replacement-risk issues. Reuters
Some analysts point to the share count as a reason Unilever’s stock finds support. The company wrapped up a €1.5 billion buyback on June 5, picking up 30,703,780 ordinary shares for a total of €1,499,999,891. Unilever said cash from the Foods deal should help cover €6 billion in buybacks through 2026-2029, including this latest €1.5 billion round.
Looking at July 28, focus is on Q2 volume compared with the Q1 2.9% baseline, price growth versus the 0.9% gain from Q1, how Europe did after dropping in Q1, and Home Care margins since the last round of inflation guidance.
