Unilever

At the Barclays Global Consumer Conference, Unilever announced a strategic realignment toward stronger growth, higher brand and marketing spending, and a more focused portfolio. After divesting its ice cream business and planning to combine its foods business with McCormick, Unilever will in future operate mainly in household and personal care and target around €39 billion in revenue. The company plans annual bolt-on acquisitions of €1.5–2 billion, focused on the US and India, and expects mid‑term adjusted sales growth of 4–6% with a significant contribution from volume growth, driven mainly by emerging markets and Hindustan Unilever as a growth engine. » More on de.investing.com

Brown Advisory sold its position in Unilever in May after an 11-year holding, saying the company delivered mid-single-digit revenue growth and successful strategic separations but failed to meet the fund's double-digit return target. The fund called Unilever's valuation attractive but assessed the consumer goods industry as less favorable due to narrowing competitive moats. Brown Advisory redeployed the capital into opportunities it views as offering higher expected returns, including a new position in Compass Group and AI-related investments. » More on finance.yahoo.com

Unilever said it will implement further price increases in coming months as rising commodity and energy costs bite, warning that recent slower price growth was temporary. The group reported underlying sales up 5.8% in Q2 and turnover of €13bn, supported in part by World Cup marketing. Management expects price growth to accelerate in the second half, while higher oil-driven input and transport costs could pressure consumers and margins depending on demand resilience. » More on theguardian.com