Marketing 10 February 2026 - 26 May 2026

Kraft Heinz slips after streak; eyes on Monday’s open
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Kraft Heinz slips after streak; eyes on Monday’s open

Kraft Heinz edged lower in early U.S. trading Monday, after breaking a six-session streak last Friday. The stock was at $23.95 before the bell at 8:00 a.m. ET, down 0.25% from its Friday close of $24.01, brokerage data showed. Kraft Heinz’s new turnaround efforts are drawing attention from investors as the company tries to spark a rebound after struggling with weak demand and pressure on margins. The Nasdaq is set for a regular open at 9:30 a.m. ET. June 1 is not listed as a holiday on the 2026 Nasdaq market schedule.
June 1, 2026
Stagwell Jumps After Holiday, AI Push in Focus
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Stagwell Jumps After Holiday, AI Push in Focus

Stagwell Inc. shares moved higher Tuesday, with trading resuming after the U.S. Memorial Day holiday and investors sticking with the ad group’s AI and digital transformation story. The shares last traded at $6.73, gaining 22 cents over the previous close of $6.51. Volume was around 660,000 shares. The stock moved between $6.50 and $6.85 intraday, market data show.
May 26, 2026
Unilever in focus as traders look to Monday open after slump
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Unilever in focus as traders look to Monday open after slump

Unilever PLC finished the week lower, with shares ending Friday at 4,207 pence in London. That’s a drop of 16.5p, or 0.39%, before the market closed for the weekend. The stock is trading close to its April low following a week where UK risk assets fell and investors reassessed the company’s portfolio moves. London trading is shut Saturday, just standard business days, no special holiday. The focus shifts to Monday, as investors watch for any private-equity offer for Magnum Ice Cream and what it could do for Unilever's stake. Some wonder if it boosts value or just complicates Unilever's ongoing breakup.
May 16, 2026
Reckitt Benckiser’s AI Push Faces a Bigger Test After Dettol Maker’s Growth Miss
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Reckitt Benckiser’s AI Push Faces a Bigger Test After Dettol Maker’s Growth Miss

This week, Reckitt Benckiser Group plc spotlighted digital science and generative AI as key players in its growth strategy during an investor session. The company said these technologies now run through its Powerbrand lineup—Dettol, Lysol, Durex, Finish, Nurofen all included. Reckitt’s pitch: faster product development, and a better chance new products actually land with consumers. This wasn’t a random move. Reckitt came up short on quarterly like-for-like net revenue forecasts last month — that measure excludes things like currency swings and portfolio shifts — and flagged that first-half margins could land roughly 200 basis points, or two percentage points, below where they stood a year ago. High oil prices and a mild cold and flu season took their toll.
May 15, 2026
Unilever Shares Slip as Strong Volumes Meet a Fresh McCormick Deal Test
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Unilever Shares Slip as Strong Volumes Meet a Fresh McCormick Deal Test

Unilever PLC shares in London edged lower late in the morning, hovering at GBX 4,247—£42.47—a 0.67% drop. The stock barely budged at the open, ticked up for a moment, and then slipped back. No rush for the exits here. Instead, the shares are drifting as investors debate what Unilever’s future actually looks like. The real squeeze isn’t about how much soap, shampoo, or deodorant Unilever sells right now. It’s about whether investors still trust leadership’s big-picture bets. On Tuesday, City AM reported that Terry Smith’s Fundsmith Equity Fund dumped its Unilever shares after the McCormick food deal. Smith accused the company of ditching its “promised operational focus” and chasing breakups instead. A prominent exit like that, especially after years in
May 13, 2026
Reckitt Benckiser’s China Speed Bet Puts Durex, Lysol Maker Back in Market Focus
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Reckitt Benckiser’s China Speed Bet Puts Durex, Lysol Maker Back in Market Focus

Kris Licht, CEO of Reckitt Benckiser Group plc, is framing China’s rapid shift to video-driven ecommerce as a key trial for the company’s broader strategy overhaul. Calling it “the most profound channel shift” he’s witnessed, Licht said Reckitt “pivoted hard” as shoppers left physical stores for their phones. The numbers are stark: ecommerce and social commerce — mostly through video and social apps — now account for roughly 80% of Reckitt’s sales in China, a steep climb from 30% six years back. China revenue is approaching £1 billion, with 11 consecutive quarters of double-digit gains, Licht told Semafor in an interview. Timing’s key here. Reckitt is out to convince investors that digital sales, quicker product cycles, and artificial intelligence aren’t
May 9, 2026
Unilever’s India Rally Puts Its Price-Hike Plan Under Fresh Scrutiny
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Unilever’s India Rally Puts Its Price-Hike Plan Under Fresh Scrutiny

Hindustan Unilever shares gained 2.6% on Monday, closing at ₹2,309.05—a jump that outstripped India’s broader indexes and arrived just as parent Unilever PLC faces pressure elsewhere. Investors appeared to shrug off last week’s warnings about higher costs and planned price hikes across Unilever’s global brands like Dove and Persil. Timing is key here. Unilever reported that first-quarter gains came from selling more products, not just upping prices — underlying sales climbed 3.8%, based on its like-for-like benchmark. The company pointed to 5.7% growth in emerging markets, with India up 7%. CEO Fernando Fernandez described it as a “good start to the year,” highlighting both the volume-driven improvement and India’s strong showing.
May 4, 2026
Unilever Sales Beat Forecasts, But Price Hikes Are Coming as War Costs Bite
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Unilever Sales Beat Forecasts, But Price Hikes Are Coming as War Costs Bite

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. 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%.
April 30, 2026
Adobe AI Agents Take Aim at Corporate Marketing as OpenAI and Anthropic Pressure Mounts
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Adobe AI Agents Take Aim at Corporate Marketing as OpenAI and Anthropic Pressure Mounts

Adobe on Monday rolled out a fresh AI suite aimed at corporate clients, stepping further into automated marketing territory. The move comes amid investor concerns over just how much of Adobe’s main software business might be vulnerable to AI-first competitors. Adobe’s new CX Enterprise hinges on AI agents—these are systems capable of planning, analyzing data, and executing tasks under human supervision. According to Adobe, the platform is designed to streamline customer engagement, tailor marketing campaigns, and automate key digital marketing processes.
April 20, 2026
AppLovin stock climbs as Axon expands AI-generated interactive ads and automated video tests
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AppLovin stock climbs as Axon expands AI-generated interactive ads and automated video tests

AppLovin is moving to broaden access to AI-generated interactive ads across its Axon marketing platform, and has begun ramping up tests with automated video creation. The company is investing further in tools designed to accelerate ad production. The stock climbed roughly 4% to $502.39 late in the morning. Shares of the Palo Alto, California-based company moved higher.
March 5, 2026
OpenAI’s ChatGPT Ads Push: Why Trade Desk Talks Have Wall Street Watching
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OpenAI’s ChatGPT Ads Push: Why Trade Desk Talks Have Wall Street Watching

OpenAI has started preliminary talks with ad-tech player The Trade Desk about selling ads on ChatGPT, according to The Information. The move could bring one of the top ad-buying platforms into closer orbit with the surging chatbot. These discussions carry weight—OpenAI is searching for new revenue streams as expenses tied to large AI models continue to rise. The Trade Desk, on the other hand, could use the boost; ad-tech stocks have taken a beating lately, and bright spots have been scarce.
March 5, 2026
Zoom taps PMG as first global media agency of record as it pushes beyond meetings
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Zoom taps PMG as first global media agency of record as it pushes beyond meetings

Zoom Communications has appointed PMG as its inaugural global media agency of record, tasking the independent firm with a wide-ranging remit while Zoom ramps up its marketing push. “We wanted a partner that could help us translate innovation into measurable business impact globally,” said Whitney Magnuson, Zoom’s head of brand strategy and activation. Zoom is looking for an edge, while Microsoft Teams and Alphabet’s Google Meet keep tying their apps into broader workplace suites—leaving standalone platforms scrambling to compete on cost. Only last week, Zoom warned investors that quarterly profit would likely fall short of Wall Street expectations. The company flagged ongoing tough competition and cautious spending by businesses as possible drags on earnings, despite fresh AI tools rolling out.
March 5, 2026
Pinterest earnings: Stock drops on weak Q1 revenue outlook as AI pivot faces a tougher ad fight
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Pinterest earnings: Stock drops on weak Q1 revenue outlook as AI pivot faces a tougher ad fight

Pinterest shares sank roughly 12% after hours Thursday after the company guided first-quarter revenue to a range of $951 million to $971 million—coming up short of the $980.1 million average estimate from analysts. The image-sharing platform, locked in a fight for advertising spend against TikTok along with Meta’s Instagram and Facebook, fell short of Wall Street’s hopes for the March quarter. The outlook’s under the microscope as Pinterest works to convince advertisers their dollars lead to actual sales—not just inspire users to scroll. Even the slightest miss or cautious forecast ramps up the pressure, with the company fighting for ad spend against much larger rivals.
February 12, 2026
TD Bank’s Super Bowl robot ad kicks off “More Human” rebrand across Canada and U.S.
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TD Bank’s Super Bowl robot ad kicks off “More Human” rebrand across Canada and U.S.

TD Bank Group is launching a cross-border brand platform called “More Human,” aiming to humanize its digital banking efforts. This marks the first time TD is unifying its brand identity across both Canada and the United States, according to an Insurance Business report. The message is clear. Banks are funneling cash into apps and artificial intelligence, even while slashing expenses and pushing routine tasks toward self-service options.
February 12, 2026