Dove maker Unilever beats quarterly sales estimates on strong demand, pricing

Consumer goods ‌major Unilever reported ​third-quarter underlying sales growth of 5.2% on Wednesday, beating market expectations, on ‌strong demand and higher prices that overrode higher commodity costs.

"Emerging markets were again a key driver, with broad-based growth across ‌markets, led by India and continued strength in Latin ‌America and Southeast Asia," CEO Fernando Fernandez said in a statement. Developed market performance, however, reflected a tougher prior year and softer performance ⁠in ​Foods, he ⁠said.

Unilever, which has been simplifying itself under Fernandez, who was appointed ⁠last year, to focus on beauty and personal care brands, has ​raised prices to tackle rising energy and transportation costs ⁠linked to the Iran war. The maker of Dove soap and ⁠Hellmann's ​mayonnaise kept its 2026 sales and profit margin forecast unchanged, and said that it expects underlying sales ⁠growth of around 5% in the second half of 2026.

Analysts were ⁠expecting ⁠underlying sales growth of 4.8% for the three months to September, according to a company-compiled consensus.