Unilever Nigeria’s food business accounted for almost all of its revenue growth in the first nine months of 2026, lifting earnings despite weaker Personal Care sales.
The company released its unaudited nine-month financial statements.
Foods revenue rose by 29.8 per cent to ₦123.12 billion. It contributed ₦28.23 billion of the company’s ₦28.60 billion increase in total sales, which means almost every additional naira of revenue came from Foods.
The performance helped the company grow pre-tax profit by 21.8 per cent to ₦45.58 billion.
The third-quarter figures, however, show an uneven business. Foods continued to grow, while both Personal Care and Beauty & Wellbeing recorded lower sales.
For shareholders, the question is whether Foods can sustain that momentum while management restores growth in the other categories.
Unilever’s Foods business, which comprises savoury products, generated ₦67 of every ₦100 in company revenue, up from ₦61 a year earlier.
Its nine-month sales of ₦123.12 billion exceeded the combined ₦60.89 billion generated by Personal Care and Beauty & Wellbeing.
Personal Care, which includes oral care and deodorants, recorded revenue of ₦42.37 billion. This was down 3.5 per cent from ₦43.92 billion.
Beauty & Wellbeing, which comprises skincare products, grew by 11.5 per cent to ₦18.52 billion.
Foods therefore did more than lead growth. It also offset the decline in Personal Care, allowing total revenue to rise by 18.4 per cent to ₦184.01 billion.
This strengthens the importance of Foods to Unilever’s earnings, but it also makes the category’s performance increasingly important to shareholders.
The gap between the businesses widened in the three months ended September.
Foods revenue in the quarter increased by 27.2 per cent to ₦46.06 billion.
Personal Care sales fell by 20.5 per cent to ₦11.40 billion, while Beauty & Wellbeing declined by 2.2 per cent to ₦6.62 billion.
Foods consequently accounted for almost 72 per cent of quarterly revenue. Its ₦9.86 billion increase in sales more than covered the combined ₦3.09 billion decline in the other two categories.
Unilever still achieved overall quarterly revenue growth of 11.8 per cent, but the result depended entirely on Foods overcoming weakness elsewhere.
The accounts do not explain how much of these movements came from prices, sales volumes or changes in the products sold.
Stronger sales also came with better margins. Revenue rose by 18.4 per cent, while the cost of sales rose by just 7.8 per cent. This left ₦46 in gross profit from every ₦100 of sales, compared with ₦41 a year earlier.
The improvement helped absorb higher marketing spending and other expenses. Operating profit rose by 26.5 per cent to ₦38.54 billion, while profit after tax increased by 20.1 per cent to ₦26.40 billion.
Foods contributed ₦25.79 billion, or about 67 per cent, of reported operating profit. Its importance therefore extends beyond sales, as it is also Unilever’s largest reported source of operating earnings.
Across the company, higher operating profit accounted for about 99 per cent of the increase in pre-tax earnings.
The improvement came overwhelmingly from the business itself, with little additional contribution from net finance income.
The uneven sales performance puts management’s investment decisions in focus. Unilever needs to sustain Foods’ momentum while addressing the decline in Personal Care.
It has considerable financial room to do so. September’s cash balance of ₦91.34 billion far exceeded the ₦2.38 billion in combined borrowings and lease obligations, giving management scope to invest without relying heavily on additional debt.
Spending on factories and equipment rose to ₦8.95 billion from ₦1.09 billion a year earlier.
The spending also needs to produce cash. Despite higher profits, operating cash after tax fell from ₦32.83 billion to ₦10.26 billion. Tax payments increased, and more money became tied up in inventory and customer balances.
Better cash generation would help fund further investment from current trading.
At the October 23 closing price of ₦109, Unilever’s shares had gained 51.4 per cent since the start of the year.
Trailing twelve-month earnings of ₦6.37 per share put the stock at 17.1 times earnings. It also traded at 6.04 times September’s book value.
Those multiples alone do not establish whether the shares are expensive, but they make sustained earnings growth important.
Foods is providing that growth today. A recovery in Personal Care would broaden the earnings base and reduce the pressure on Foods to carry the business.
