Unilever First Half Results

In the late 19th century the businesses that would later become Unilever were among the most philanthropic of their time. They set up projects to improve the lot of their workers and created products with a positive social impact, making hygiene and personal care commonplace and improving nutrition through adding vitamins to foods that were already daily staples.

Unilever's founding companies produced products made of oils and fats, principally soap and margarine. At the beginning of the 20th century their expansion nearly outstripped the supply of raw materials.

Unilever is today one of the world's leading suppliers of fast-moving consumer goods. Here are some well known brands from their three global divisions - foods, home care and personal care.


Foods


Bovril,  Marmite,  Flora Margarine,  PG tips, Pot Noodle, Ben & Jerrys Ice Cream, Colman’s Mustard,  Magnum Ice Cream,  Hellmann’s Mayonnaise




Personal Care

Dove soaps, Timotei Shampoo, Lynx Deodorant, Sure Deodorant, Vaseline, Brylcreem


Home Care

Domestos,  Cif,  Persil,  Comfort,  Surf


They have today announced half year results to 30th June 2013 (link via Investegate). Revenues are up 5% and although sales in emerging markets are slowing, they are still up over 10% for the first half year.

"This set of results clearly demonstrates that the transformation of Unilever to a sustainable growth company is fully on track…Innovation remains the key driver of growth with examples such as compressed deodorants, Vaseline Spray & Go and Magnum 5 kisses. And there is more to come: our innovation pipeline is robust which will be vital as we navigate the slowdown in many parts of the world.” CEO Paul Polman.

The share price has seen a strong run in recent months - up around 300p or just over 12% since the start of 2013. Todays figures are slightly below analysts expectations and the sp is down around 2%.

Unilever is one of my permanent fixtures and definitely a long term hold.

As ever, if you are considering ULVR for your portfolio, please DYOR.