LONDON, March 24, 2026, 12:28 GMT
Unilever stuck close to its 52-week low on Tuesday in London, with shares slipping to 4,535 pence during the session — matching Monday’s close, off 1.32%. The move comes as investors continue to digest the company’s March 20 news about ongoing discussions with McCormick regarding its Foods division. By mid-morning, the STOXX 600 was also lower, down 0.3%. 1
This isn’t just about value creation—investors keep eyeing the potential deal as yet another tricky carve-out. Back on March 20, Unilever confirmed it had fielded an unsolicited offer for Foods and entered talks with McCormick, stressing again there’s no guarantee of a deal. 2
The caution lingers. Unilever’s board called Foods “highly attractive” as part of the company, putting it to investors to judge whether CEO Fernando Fernandez is streamlining the lineup or simply stirring up restructuring risk again—just months since Unilever carved out its Magnum ice cream unit. 2
This isn’t a minor operation. Foods reported sales topping 12.9 billion euros in 2025, with operating profit landing at 2.9 billion euros. Still, underlying sales growth came in at just 2.5%—lagging both Unilever’s 4% to 6% medium-term target and the beauty and wellbeing unit, which managed 4.3%. 3
Richard Saldanha, who manages global equity portfolios at Aviva and holds Unilever shares, called it sensible for the company to weigh its options, given the quicker category and volume growth in personal care and beauty. TD Cowen analyst Robert Moskow pointed to “strong strategic logic” in a McCormick deal, suggesting it could bring synergies. 4
The numbers don’t line up neatly here. Barclays has pegged the Foods unit’s value between 28 billion and 31 billion euros—compare that to McCormick’s own market cap of around $14.5 billion. That mismatch is fueling chatter among bankers and analysts about using a Reverse Morris Trust, a tax-friendly setup where a company spins off a business and then merges it with another firm. 4
Still, a smart setup doesn’t eliminate execution risk. “Value is won or lost” in the actual separation process, Davis Householder, managing director at MycoManagement, pointed out. Barclays analyst Warren Ackerman flagged on March 18 that Fernandez might get “distracted” if he moves to split off food this quickly after spinning out ice cream. 5
On paper, the strategy tracks. McCormick picked up French’s and Frank’s RedHot back in 2017, scooping up Reckitt’s North American food portfolio. Reuters noted Unilever had looked into tying up with Kraft Heinz’s condiments unit too, but those discussions fizzled. 6
Unilever faces scrutiny as it looks to make good on its post-Magnum strategy. Back on February 12, the company flagged that sales growth in 2026 would likely hit the low end of its 4% to 6% target, citing weaker demand in both the U.S. and Europe. RBC Capital Markets’ James Edwardes Jones noted some encouraging early signs from the reorganisation, but said the process won’t be quick. 7
The stock isn’t mincing words. Investors pushed shares down to test the low on Tuesday, signaling they’re not ready to buy into another portfolio shakeup unless it clearly boosts value—not just shuffles assets around. A McCormick deal remains on the table. 1
