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A SOLID START, ON TRACK FOR 3 – 5% UNDERLYING SALES GROWTH IN 2017 |
First quarter highlights
· Turnover increased 6.1% to €13.3 billion including a positive currency impact of 2.4%
· Underlying sales growth 2.9% with price up 3.0% and volume down (0.1)%, USG was 3.4% excluding spreads
· Emerging markets underlying sales growth 6.1% with price up 5.3% and volume up 0.8%
· Quarterly dividend raised 12% to €0.3585 per share
Paul Polman: Chief Executive Officer statement
“The first quarter shows growth once more ahead of our markets. This reflects our continued investment in both innovations and brand support, and reconfirms the strength of our long term sustainable compounding growth model.
The change programme 'Connected for Growth' which we started implementing in the autumn last year is starting to bear fruit and is making Unilever more agile and closer to the local markets, unlocking both further growth and margin.
The actions we are taking keep us on track for another year of underlying sales growth ahead of our markets, in the 3 – 5% range. We also expect an improvement in underlying operating margin this year of at least 80 basis points and strong cash flow. We are raising the dividend by 12%, reflecting the confidence in our outlook.”
20 April 2017