Anglo-Dutch consumer products giant Unilever has reported a surprising six per cent boost to third-quarter earnings, keeping it on track for its target of double-digit growth for the year.
The world's largest consumer goods group, which makes Knorr soups, Liptons tea and Dove soap, said its underlying third quarter earnings underlying net profits were up five per cent at €1.053 billion, rose after analysts had been expecting a flat performance.
Unilever shares in London rose 12-1/2 pence to 513-1/2p while Unilever NV stock in Amsterdam was up 3 per cent at €59.30 by 8.50 a.m.
The results were also boosted by a better than forecast 5.4 per cent sales growth across the group's top 400 brands such as Omo detergent, Magnum ice cream, Hellmann's mayonnaise, and Close Up toothpaste, after Unilever said in a September update it expected annualised growth of just 4.5 per cent.
The group's Q3 performance was boosted by strong sales growth from its food businesses such as European ice cream and ready-to-drink teas, while in the United States ice cream and Slim-Fast also had a good quarter.
Unilever has outperformed the FTSE All Share market by 30 per cent over the last 12 months, and the Dow Jones European food and beverage index by around 18 per cent.