Unilever Nigeria Plc has nearly doubled its profit before tax to N21.98 billion for the nine months ended September 2025, compared with N11.01 billion in the same period of 2024, as the company’s strategic pricing and cost discipline bolstered margins and overall profitability.
The consumer goods manufacturer’s unaudited results for the third quarter, released on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), showed that the performance was driven by robust revenue growth and a firm grip on operating costs, reflecting improved operating leverage across its core business lines.
Revenue surged 43.5% year on year in the third quarter and 49.7% over the nine-month period, buoyed by effective pricing actions and moderate volume gains.
Its Beauty & Wellbeing segment led growth, soaring 111.7% and contributing a quarter of total sales, while Food Products – the largest contributor – rose 49.1% to account for over 63% of turnover. Personal Care grew 15% during the period.
Domestic sales climbed 52.5% to N57.16 billion, reflecting resilient local demand, even as export revenue fell sharply by 93.9% to N148.63 million amid weaker external demand.
Although the cost of sales rose 52.4% year on year, compressing gross margin to 38.1%, the company still achieved an EBITDA margin expansion of 334 basis points to 21.6%, supported by stable operating expenses, which increased only 2.2%. Marketing and administrative costs declined slightly by 0.6%, reducing the operating expense margin to 18.5%.
Unilever also strengthened its financial position through better cash and leverage management. Yields on call deposits jumped 213.5%, lifting net finance income by 60.2%, while interest expenses on bank loans fell nearly 90%.
Despite a higher effective tax rate of 42.9%, profit after tax for the third quarter rose 15.3% to N7.58 billion, while earnings per share climbed to N1.32 in Q3 and N3.83 for the nine-month period – almost double the figure recorded in 2024.
Analysts attribute the company’s strong pre-tax performance to a blend of disciplined cost control, improved operational efficiency and strong domestic demand. They expect the momentum to persist into the full year, aided by festive season demand, gradual volume recovery and a more stable foreign exchange environment. Unilever’s forward estimates remain under review.
