Mar 14, 2017
Pressure is on Unilever to satisfy investors
Unilever is considering returning cash to shareholders, making medium-sized acquisitions and more aggressive cost cuts as part of a sweeping review, the results of which it will announce next month. The review follows what Paul Polman, Unilever chief executive, has privately described as the "Near-death" experience of Kraft Heinz's $143bn takeover bid, which could have seen the Anglo-Dutch company swallowed up by the US group, backed by private equity firm 3G Capital and Warren Buffett. Unilever's share price now sits above the £39.50 a share proposed by Kraft Heinz, adding to the pressure on Mr Polman to satisfy investor expectations. According to one large shareholder supportive of Unilever, he has recognised that "The pendulum needs to swing a little bit back to shareholder returns". In the past, Mr Polman has dismissed share buybacks as not making "Any sense" but Unilever is now "Open to ideas", says one investor.
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