REG - Unilever PLC - Unilever update

UnileverAnnouncement

17/01/2022 07:05

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RNS Number : 6408Y  Unilever PLC  17 January 2022

Unilever update

 

London, 17 January 2022. The management and Board of Unilever are committed to
accelerating the company's growth and repositioning the portfolio into higher
growth categories. As a result of the reporting of Unilever's interest in GSK
Consumer Healthcare, we are today bringing forward a planned update, setting
out the strategic direction that the company is pursuing.

 

Unilever's strategic direction

 

Following the unification of Unilever, the Board has undertaken an extensive
process to review strategic pathways to reposition Unilever's portfolio into
higher growth categories.

 

This concluded that Unilever's future strategic direction lies in materially
expanding its presence in Health, Beauty, and Hygiene. These categories offer
higher rates of sustainable market growth, with significant opportunities to
drive growth through investment and innovation, and by leveraging Unilever's
strong presence in emerging markets.

 

The Board also concluded that major acquisitions should be accompanied by the
accelerated divestment of intrinsically lower growth brands and businesses.
This would provide funding and enable separation dis-synergies to be offset by
acquisition synergies.

 

Unilever is committed to strict financial discipline to ensure that
acquisitions create value for shareholders. The company benefits from a strong
balance sheet and cash generation, and remains committed to maintaining an
A-band credit rating. Following any acquisition, the company would target a
return to current levels of gearing over the short to medium term.

 

Consumer Health is an attractive strategic option

 

Consumer Health is a highly complementary category for Unilever, with good
potential for synergies and a number of routes to build scale.

 

GSK Consumer Healthcare would be a strong strategic fit. 45% of GSK Consumer
Healthcare is in Oral Care and VMS - categories in which Unilever already has
presence and substantial capabilities. OTC would be an attractive adjacent
category, with the ability to combine Unilever's consumer and branding
expertise with GSK Consumer Health's technical OTC capabilities. The
acquisition would create scale and a growth platform for the combined
portfolio in the US, China, and India, with further opportunities in other
emerging markets.

 

We believe that this would be an attractive and synergistic combination for
the shareholders of Unilever, which would also deliver value and certainty for
the shareholders of GSK and Pfizer.

 

Accelerating operating performance

 

As well as addressing its long-term strategic direction, Unilever has been
focused on accelerating growth within the existing business. A series of
initiatives have been implemented to enhance operating performance. These
include increased focus on operational excellence to improve market
competitiveness, and aligning resources to five clear strategic choices. We
have also strengthened our portfolio through the establishment of fast-growing
new businesses of scale in Prestige Beauty and Functional Nutrition, and the
divestment of Spreads and Tea.

 

Later this month we will announce a major initiative to enhance our
performance. After a comprehensive review of our organisation structure, we
intend to move away from our existing matrix to an operating model that will
drive greater agility, improve category focus, and strengthen accountability.

 

During 2021 we started to see the results of the operational initiatives in
our growth momentum, despite the challenges in our markets posed by the Covid
pandemic. At the trading update in October, Unilever reported Q3 YTD growth at
its fastest rate for eight years. We will update on our performance for Q4,
and the full year, on February 10th.

 

The management and Board of Unilever remain focused on continuing to build
momentum across the business and reshaping the company for a strong and
sustainable future.

 

 

ENDS

 

Enquiries
Media:

Jonathan Sibun +44 77 7999 9683 / JSibun@tulchangroup.com

Lucila Zambrano +44 78 2527 3767 / lucila.zambrano@unilever.com

 

Investors:

Investor Relations Team +44 20 7822 6830 investor.relations@unilever.com

 

About Unilever  

 

Unilever is one of the world's leading suppliers of Beauty & Personal
Care, Home Care, and Foods & Refreshment products, with sales in over 190
countries and products used by 2.5 billion people every day. We have 149,000
employees and generated sales of €50.7 billion in 2020.

Our vision is to be the global leader in sustainable business and to
demonstrate how our purpose-led, future-fit business model drives superior
performance. We have a long tradition of being a progressive, responsible
business.

The Unilever Compass, our sustainable business strategy, is set out to help us
deliver superior performance and drive sustainable and responsible growth,
while:

- improving the health of the planet;

- improving people's health, confidence and wellbeing; and

- contributing to a fairer and more socially inclusive world.

For more information about Unilever and our brands, please
visit www.unilever.com
(https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.unilever.com%2F&data=04%7C01%7CAndriana.Matsangou%40unilever.com%7C42ee47b2288d45f8f2a208d8df2d618c%7Cf66fae025d36495bbfe078a6ff9f8e6e%7C1%7C0%7C637504733280668573%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=lScCQSEAvkw%2Bpg9uZtvDK3xlyNvKIfqQyv6GDWdkKt8%3D&reserved=0)
.  

 

 

Safe Harbour

 

This announcement may contain forward-looking statements, including
'forward-looking statements' within the meaning of the United States Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as 'will', 'aim',
'expects', 'anticipates', 'intends', 'looks', 'believes', 'vision', or the
negative of these terms and other similar expressions of future performance or
results, and their negatives, are intended to identify such forward-looking
statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon current
expectations and assumptions regarding anticipated developments and other
factors affecting the Unilever Group (the 'Group'). They are not historical
facts, nor are they guarantees of future performance.

 

Because these forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties,
there are important factors that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking
statements. Among other risks and uncertainties, the material or principal
factors which could cause actual results to differ materially are: Unilever's
global brands not meeting consumer preferences; Unilever's ability to innovate
and remain competitive; Unilever's investment choices in its portfolio
management; the effect of climate change on Unilever's business; Unilever's
ability to find sustainable solutions to its plastic packaging; significant
changes or deterioration in customer relationships; the recruitment and
retention of talented employees; disruptions in our supply chain and
distribution; increases or volatility in the cost of raw materials and
commodities; the production of safe and high quality products; secure and
reliable IT infrastructure; execution of acquisitions, divestitures and
business transformation projects; economic, social and political risks and
natural disasters; financial risks; failure to meet high and ethical
standards; and managing regulatory, tax and legal matters. A number of these
risks have increased as a result of the current Covid-19 pandemic. These
forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this document. Except
as required by any applicable law or regulation, the Group expressly disclaims
any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to
any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in the
Group's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions
or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

 

Further details of potential risks and uncertainties affecting the Group are
described in the Group's filings with the London Stock Exchange, Euronext
Amsterdam and the US Securities and Exchange Commission, including in the
Annual Report on Form 20-F 2020 and the Unilever Annual Report and Accounts
2020 available on our corporate website.

 

 

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