Unilever Posts 5.2% Underlying Sales Growth, Raises Minimum Full-Year Volume Growth Outlook to 3%
Key Facts
Unilever said underlying sales grew 5.2% in the third quarter of 2026, supported by volume growth of 2.9% and price growth of 2.3%, and raised its full-year underlying volume growth outlook to at least 3%. Quarterly revenue reached 13.3 billion euros, up 6.7% from the same period in 2025, according to the company's results statement. Underlying sales growth was above Unilever's published quarterly expectation of 4.0%. The company said prices rose in response to higher commodity costs, while volume growth contributed more than half of the underlying growth rate. Annual volume growth had been 4.2% in the first half, with prices up 0.6%, before the contributions of the two factors shifted in the third quarter.
The comparison with previous quarters shows underlying sales growth continuing, although it slowed from 5.8% in the second quarter, when volume growth was 5.5%. In the first half of 2026, underlying sales growth was 4.8%, with volume growth of 4.2% and price growth of 0.6%. In the third quarter, the contribution from prices rose to 2.3% amid higher commodity costs, while volume growth eased to 2.9%. Unilever said cost pressures were particularly notable in home care and personal care. This third-quarter mix reflects rising prices alongside continued growth in units sold, rather than growth relying on pricing alone.
Growth was led by the company's major brands, whose underlying sales rose 5.8% in the third quarter, with volumes up 3.3%. Those brands recorded underlying growth of 6.0% and volume growth of 5.4% in the first half, and the company described their contribution to growth as leading. By business group, home care posted the strongest underlying growth at 9.1%, followed by personal care at 6.3% and beauty and wellbeing at 5.7%. By contrast, underlying food sales growth was just 0.1%. Home care, personal care, and beauty and wellbeing together also delivered underlying growth of 7.0% and volume growth of 4.1%, according to the company's published quarterly data.
Geographically, underlying sales in emerging markets grew 9.5%, with volumes up 6.0%, according to Unilever's statement. In developed markets, underlying sales fell 0.9%, highlighting the divergence between the two regions during the quarter. The company attributed its strong performance to emerging markets, where volume growth helped drive the overall result. Chief Executive Fernando Fernandez said, "There is broad-based momentum in our emerging markets business, with strong performance in India and a good recovery in Latin America." The comment is consistent with the quarterly figures, which showed stronger growth in those markets against the decline recorded in developed markets.
On shareholder returns, Unilever announced an interim quarterly dividend of 0.4664 euros per ordinary share for the third quarter, up 3.0% from the third-quarter 2025 dividend. The dividend announcement accompanied an update to the annual volume outlook in the same results statement. The company's previous estimate, following its first-half results, indicated underlying volume growth of around 3% in fiscal 2026 and underlying sales growth in a range of 4% to 6%. It also forecast sales growth of 4% to 5% in the second half, led by pricing. Its previous outlook said commodity cost inflation would remain elevated in the second half and gross margin would stay close to the first-half level of 46.8%.
Unilever shares listed under the ticker UL closed at $65.05 on October 27, 2026, compared with a close of $65.61 in the previous session, according to EL7 data. These figures are limited to the two daily closing prices and do not include an intraday high. The company has announced an investor event for November 4, 2026. Unilever set February 11, 2027, as the date for publishing its fourth-quarter and fiscal 2026 results. Those results will provide the next occasion to assess the year's performance following the updated outlook for volume and revenue growth for the current year.