London, Feb 23, 2026, 08:39 GMT — Regular session.
- Unilever (ULVR.L) edged up 0.15% to 5,388 pence during early trading in London
- European shares dropped, weighed down by renewed jitters over U.S. trade policy.
- This week, investors are watching Unilever’s Feb. 26 ex-dividend date.
Unilever ticked up in London, adding 0.15% to 5,388 pence in early action. Last closing price: 5,380 pence.
Even a modest uptick drew attention, with sentiment across Europe taking a cautious turn at the open. Unilever often attracts buyers looking for a defensive play when risk appetite fades. Some investors were shifting positions before a dividend cut-off scheduled for later this week.
European shares slipped, weighed down by fresh doubts about U.S. tariffs. The STOXX 600 dropped 0.3% at 0815 GMT, with Germany’s DAX posting the steepest losses. President Donald Trump over the weekend bumped up the global tariff rate to 15%, after initially signaling 10%, according to Reuters.
Unilever’s ordinary shares will trade ex-dividend on Feb. 26, its dividend calendar shows. On Feb. 12, the company announced a quarterly dividend for Q4 2025, payable April 10. Holders as of Feb. 27 will be eligible.
The ex-dividend date marks when new buyers lose eligibility for the next dividend. Typically, the stock price drops by about the dividend’s value as trading opens that day.
Unilever’s renewed dividend focus follows its full-year report earlier this month, where the company projected 2026 underlying sales growth would likely be at the low end of its 4% to 6% multi-year target, pointing to weaker demand in both the U.S. and Europe. Alongside that, a 1.5 billion euro share buyback was unveiled, and management flagged only a “modest” bump in the 2025 operating margin. “It will take time” for these efforts to deliver, RBC Capital Markets analyst James Edwardes Jones remarked. At Quilter Cheviot, consumer staples analyst Chris Beckett described the consumer environment as “okay-ish,” still “far from firing on all cylinders.” Reuters
Unilever’s preferred organic metric is “underlying” sales growth—this figure leaves out currency moves, as well as results from acquisitions and disposals.
Shareholders face the possibility that tariffs could rattle currencies and dent consumer confidence, cutting into volumes at a tough moment for Unilever. The company is already easing up on price hikes to protect its price/mix gains. If developed markets pull back more sharply than forecast, Unilever’s ambition to keep growth on target could face a real challenge.
This week’s risk-off tone has investors on edge, watching to see if the mood sticks. Staples might weather some volatility, though if equity selling gets indiscriminate, they’re not completely sheltered.
Coming soon: Unilever goes ex-dividend on Feb. 26. After that, the Q1 2026 trading statement lands April 30—watch for fresh numbers on sales momentum.
