LONDON--Unilever PLC (ULVR.LN) Wednesday warned of a challenging
global market due to "intense competition and volatile commodity
costs," but nonetheless reported a 5.4% rise in net profit as its
sales accelerated.
Net profit for the fiscal year rose to 4.48 billion euros ($5.96
billion) from 4.25 billion euros a year earlier.
Demand for home and personal-care items like cleaners and
deodorant across Asia, Africa and Latin America are helping the
consumer products giant outperform peers that are more exposed to
food sales, as well as debt-laden Western Europe and U.S.
markets.
Fourth-quarter sales, excluding acquisitions, disposals and
currency movements, rose 7.8%, beating consensus expectations of
6.3% growth. This compares with a 6.6% rise a year earlier and a
5.9% increase in the previous three months.
Volumes on the same basis rose 4.8%, up from 0.1% growth last
year and 3.4% in the third quarter.
Unilever proposed a quarterly dividend of 0.243 euros a share,
payable in March. It is targeting profitable volume growth ahead of
its markets and sustainable operating margin improvement over the
longer term.
The Anglo-Dutch firm, behind products such as Ben & Jerry's
ice cream, Knorr soup and Dove soap, is the second-largest maker of
branded household products by revenue after U.S.-based Procter
& Gamble Co. (PG).
Unilever's fiscal-year gross profit margin rose as price
increases and savings offset higher commodity costs.
Unilever shares closed Tuesday at 2451 pence, valuing the
company at 31.46 billion pounds.
Write to Simon Zekaria at simon.zekaria@dowjones.com
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