LONDON, June 10, 2026, 12:03 BST
- Unilever was at 4,322.50p by midday in London, rising 0.89% after a 2.23% move up on Tuesday.
- Unilever said in Wednesday’s RNS that it wrapped up its €1.5 billion buyback programme, with the June 1–5 purchases the final ones. The company has 30,703,780 shares in treasury now.
- The next question is if volume growth, along with the planned deal with McCormick Foods, can back a longer capital-return plan through 2029.
Unilever PLC shares traded higher on Wednesday on news of the latest €1.5 billion buyback update, with investors focusing on returns. Shares gained 0.89% to 4,322.50p by midday in London, according to Google Finance.
Unilever pushed 2.23% higher to £42.85 on Tuesday, beating the FTSE 100, which dropped 1.41%. The stock’s move came ahead of a Wednesday filing that stopped short of launching a fresh buyback and instead clarified how much stock from the finished programme is now in Unilever’s hands.
Unilever wrapped up its share buyback, purchasing 30,703,780 ordinary shares for a total market value of €1,499,999,891. The company had launched the buyback program with its 2025 results and began buying shares on April 30. Buybacks pull shares from the market, usually boosting per-share figures for investors.
Unilever bought shares between June 1 and June 5 via Morgan Stanley, the company said in its latest transaction notice. Purchases took place on the London Stock Exchange and other venues. The repurchased stock is being held in treasury, meaning Unilever itself holds these shares instead of the public. The company said this wraps up the buyback programme.
Unilever’s official buyback page said the buyback aimed to cut capital, with an original end date set for on or before July 6. Wrapping up the programme early means investors now have a set figure for valuation models as they look ahead to the next operating update.
Unilever’s first-quarter numbers still show a mixed business. The company posted 3.8% underlying sales growth, a like-for-like figure that excludes things like currency and asset sales. Volumes rose 2.9% and price added 0.9%. Power Brands saw 5.0% underlying sales growth, helped by a 4.0% jump in volumes.
Unilever CEO Fernando Fernandez said in the Q1 update, “We have started the year well with volume-led growth driven by our Power Brands.” Investors are focused on whether Unilever can keep up that volume trend. The company stuck with its 2026 forecast, calling for underlying sales growth at the lower end of its 4%-6% target and underlying volume to grow at least 2%. Unilever
Developed markets were weak, up just 1.0% for the quarter. Europe stayed subdued. Currency cut 7.7 percentage points from turnover, sending it down 3.3% to €12.6 billion. This helps explain why investors are focused on capital discipline and portfolio reshaping, not just sales.
Unilever is moving ahead with its plan to merge its Foods division with McCormick. The March deal would create a company with about $20 billion in revenue in 2025. Unilever itself would shift toward home and personal care, targeting around €39 billion of 2025 revenue from its beauty, wellbeing, personal care and home care units.
Unilever Foods got a $44.8 billion transaction value as part of the deal. Unilever and its shareholders are set for 65% of the combined McCormick-Foods business on a fully diluted basis. Unilever will also get $15.7 billion in cash for things like separation, taxes, debt reduction and capital returns, according to .
Unilever’s €1.5 billion buyback is done, but investors aren’t seeing it as just a technical step. The company said it’s planning about €6 billion in share buybacks from 2026 to 2029, helped by cash from the Foods deal. So the market is looking at this buyback as the start of a larger plan to return cash.
Analyst signals aren’t all bullish yet. On Google Finance, out of 15 analysts, there were seven buys, six holds, and two sells, with an average 12-month target price of 5,036.04p. Investors Chronicle had a median target of 5,194.09p from 17 analysts, with ratings spanning from buy to strong sell.
Unilever’s capital-return story looks a bit tighter now. The buyback is done, so that buyer is gone. The McCormick deal isn’t a lock either—it’s still waiting on McCormick shareholder and regulatory sign-off, plus other usual closing steps. Unilever has flagged that the deal might not close on the same terms or timeline, and that putting it all together could push back or trim the $600 million in annual synergies it expects.
Unilever’s next results come July 28, covering the second quarter and first half. Investors want to see whether the company can keep up volume-led growth after the buyback finishes, and if the Foods-McCormick deal is enough to support the 2026–2029 capital-return plan.
