RBC Updates Model for Unilever After H1 Earnings; Sector Perform Rating Maintained

01:29 AM EDT, 07/29/2026 (MT Newswires) -- RBC Capital Markets tweaked its model for Unilever (ULVR.L, UNA.AS), revising its price target and earnings estimates for the consumer goods giant, noting the first-half results "felt like a throwback." "Unilever drove volume by investing in price, and the result was a (by consumer staples standards) massive volume beat of 300 [basis points] in 2Q. The consequent operating leverage essentially offset the adverse mix impact of strong growth in the [low-margin] household business. We're a bit mystified, then, why Unilever is adamant that pricing is going to increase in 2H, and it expects some volume 'sensitivity'. It seems that this is the price one pays for building a premium portfolio," analysts said Tuesday. Unilever's turnover for the six months ended June 30 was 25.62 billion euros, up from the previous year's 25.51 billion euros. The company's first-half underlying sales growth reached 4.8%, with momentum picking up in the second quarter to 5.8%, bolstered by a 5.5% volume contribution. "That being so, we are not inclined to extrapolate from this quarter. Indeed, we continue to believe that the 2% volume growth that Unilever targets on an ongoing basis is very demanding. We have nonetheless nudged up our revenue growth forecast, albeit it remains below the 4-6% anticipated in Unilever's [medium-term] guidance. Our adjusted [present-value-derived] price target has increased to [GBP46 from GBP43], and we retain our Sector Perform rating," the note said. Within this context, RBC also raised its revenue, EBITA and operating EPS forecasts for full-year 2026 through 2028.