Unilever выглядит как зрелый защитный бизнес с сильной выручкой и устойчивой прибыльностью, но рынок уже платит за это заметную премию. Мультипликатор P/S 3.36 и P/FCF 36.29 выглядят дорого относительно отрасли, а рост этих коэффициентов по сравнению с прошлым годом указывает на ухудшение соотношения цены и денежного потока. Отсутствие данных по P/E и P/B не позволяет подтвердить переоценённость через все каналы, но имеющиеся оценки уже достаточно напряжённые. С другой стороны, маржа чистой прибыли 8.83% и операционная маржа 11.18% выше медианы отрасли, что поддерживает качество бизнеса и частично оправдывает премию. При этом валовая маржа выглядит слабее отрасли, а это ограничивает потенциал дальнейшего расширения прибыльности. Ликвидность остаётся уязвимой: current ratio 0.79 и quick ratio 0.60 ниже комфортных уровней, хотя для FMCG это не критично, если денежные потоки стабильны. Долговая нагрузка по debt/equity выглядит очень низкой, что является сильным плюсом для устойчивости баланса. Абсолютные показатели прибыли, EBITDA и выручки остаются крупными и поддерживают инвестиционный профиль компании как защитного эмитента. Собственный капитал и активы значительны, но снижение equity по сравнению с более ранними периодами требует внимания. Дивидендная доходность около 0.97% растёт, но остаётся умеренной и не выглядит главным драйвером переоценки. В целом фундаментал скорее качественный, чем дешёвый: сильные маржи, низкий долг и стабильные денежные потоки компенсируются дорогими мультипликаторами и слабой ликвидностью. Для инвестора это означает, что потенциал роста есть, но он ограничен уже высокой оценкой, поэтому целевой прогноз стоит немного снизить.

Unilever PLC

Качество бизнеса у Unilever высокое, но оценка уже напряжённая: сильные маржи и низкий долг сочетаются с дорогими P/S и P/FCF и слабой ликвидностью.

Key Points
The stocks listed here pay between 2.6% and 4.9% in dividends.
These are large, recognizable businesses that have solid fundamentals.
Dividend stocks that have fallen to 52-week lows can be enticing options to buy. When share prices drop, that means the yield you're collecting rises, since it means it costs less to acquire a piece of the business, and thus, the dividend income represents a greater proportion of the money you invest. Plus, at a lower price, there's the potential to profit from a rise in price should the stock rally in the future.
Three dividend stocks that recently hit new lows that you may want to consider buying today include McDonald's (NYSE: MCD), AT&T (NYSE: T), and Unilever (NYSE: UL).
Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue »
McDonald's
Few companies in the world are as iconic as McDonald's. Its golden arches can be a welcome sight for travelers as the fast-food chain often represents a convenient and relatively low-cost option for a quick meal.
While prices have risen in recent years due to inflation, its restaurants still provide consumers with plenty of value, as evidenced by its continued growth. In the quarter ending March 31, McDonald's reported comparable sales growth of 3.8%, with performance broadly similar across international and domestic markets. It's a good sign of continually strong demand for its products.
McDonald's may not be a growth machine, but it is certainly a dependable and stable long-term investment. And, of course, let's not forget the dividend income you can generate from this investment. At 2.6%, its yield is more than double the S&P 500 average of 1%. The stock is down around 8% this year and recently hit a new 52-week low, but with a reasonable price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple of 23, it can be a great pick up today, as this is a top dividend stock you can comfortably hang on to for the long haul.
AT&T
Shares of AT&T have been falling recently as investors grow more concerned that SpaceX and its Starlink business may disrupt the broader telecom market. It's an issue that looks overblown, or at best, premature. Starlink is part of SpaceX's connectivity segment, which generated $11.4 billion in revenue last year. AT&T, by comparison, reported revenue that was 11 times that amount last year -- $125.6 billion.
AT&T is a top telecom provider, and while competition may chip away at some of its market share, the stock's recent decline represents a bit of an overreaction simply due to SpaceX gaining more attention of late as a result of its upcoming IPO. However, AT&T stock isn't exactly tumbling over a cliff; it's down around 9% for the year.
For dividend investors, this could be an opportune time to buy this low-volatility stock, as its yield is up around 4.9% right now. AT&T's stock is trading near its lows, and its valuation is enticing -- its P/E multiple is just seven.
Unilever
Top consumer brand Unilever is another dividend stock that's been struggling of late. Its shares are down 12% this year, making its decline the most significant on this list. The market has been concerned with the news that the company is looking to spin off its food business and the uncertainty that might bring.
While it might make the business smaller, Unilever sees it as an opportunity to be more of a pure play home and personal care company. That can help drive efficiency and allow the company to be more focused in its growth efforts. And although the food segment is a key one for Unilever, it was also its slowest-growing one in its most recent quarter, with management saying that "category conditions remained soft" in developed markets.
Unilever stock currently yields right around 4%, making it another excellent income stock to buy and hold. And with its price declining, the stock's valuation looks attractive, as it trades at a P/E ratio of just over 19.
Should you buy stock in McDonald's right now?
Before you buy stock in McDonald's, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and McDonald's wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $439,038!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,277,804!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 942% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 206% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
David Jagielski, CPA has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Unilever and recommends the following options: long January 2028 $320 calls on McDonald's and short January 2028 $340 calls on McDonald's. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Bargain Hunters: These 3 Dividend Stocks Recently Hit New 52-Week Lows

Key Points
McCormick combines a century-long dividend record with transformative merger-driven growth potential.
Clorox's temporary operational challenges have created an attractive high-yield entry point.
Both consumer staples leaders offer a rare mix of income, stability, and discounted valuations.
There are certain kinds of investors who drive themselves bonkers trying to figure out exactly the right moment to buy. I know: I'm that way. You can watch the charts, wait for a dip, panic when it dips too far, and end up holding cash through years of compounding that you will never get back.
The honest answer to the question of "When should I buy?" is usually simpler than anyone wants it to be: When you find a great business at a reasonable price, you buy it, and then you hold it long enough for the dividend to do the work.
Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue »
The following two companies are not flashy. One makes spices; the other makes cleaning products. But behind those ordinary descriptions are businesses with dividend growth streaks of more than four decades. Their brands sit in virtually every American kitchen and pantry, and their stock prices have been knocked down to levels not seen in years.
1. McCormick
McCormick (NYSE: MKC) has been paying dividends without interruption since 1925 -- which means it kept paying through the Great Depression, World War II, the dot-com crash, the 2008 financial crisis, and a pandemic. That kind of track record does not happen by accident; it's because the underlying business is genuinely hard to disrupt.
McCormick controls the flavor aisle. Its spices and seasonings are in roughly 80% of U.S. kitchens, and the company generates revenue in about 150 countries.
This is a strong company in a permanent sector: People always cook and always will. And when they reach for a bottle of garlic powder or Old Bay, they reach for McCormick.
What makes 2026 particularly interesting is that the stock has been punished for temporary reasons rather than structural ones. Shares have fallen roughly 30% to 40% from their 52-week highs and now sit at their lowest valuation in years, with a dividend yield that has swelled to around 4% -- a level historically associated with McCormick being on sale.
The bigger, less-discussed story with this company is its transformation. In March 2026, McCormick announced a merger with Unilever's foods division -- the business behind Hellmann's, among other brands -- creating a combined company with projected revenue approaching $20 billion.
Unilever is shrinking to grow by shedding food in favor of health and personal care; McCormick is growing by absorbing exactly the kind of globally distributed food brands it has always been built around. The deal is expected to close in mid-2027, and it will transform a great $13 billion company into a flavor giant with truly global reach.
To me, buying McCormick today is buying a 100-year-old dividend grower at a historically low valuation, on the eve of what could be the most transformative deal in the company's history. The income checks are already coming every quarter. The patient part is just waiting for the market to remember why it loved this company in the first place.
2. Clorox: boring name, beautiful business model
A company that has been growing its dividend for 48 consecutive years is, by definition, a business that has survived a lot. Clorox (NYSE: CLX) has done exactly that -- and right now, it is going through one of the rougher stretches in its recent history, which has pushed down its shares to a level that makes the long-term case genuinely compelling.
The near-term pain is real: Clorox has been navigating a messy transition in its enterprise resource planning (ERP) system that has disrupted shipments and caused earnings misses across several quarters. ERP transitions are the corporate equivalent of renovating the plumbing while the family is still living in the house -- necessary, disruptive, and eventually behind you.
The company has said that ERP-related costs are expected to diminish by the fourth quarter of the current fiscal year. That is not speculative -- it is a timeline provided by a management team with 48 years of experience running this business without cutting the dividend.
The more strategic move is the one that got almost no attention: a $2.25 billion acquisition of Gojo Industries, the maker of Purell hand sanitizer, that closed April 1, 2026. Think about what that means for the brand portfolio.
Clorox already owns its range of cleaning products and Pine-Sol, Glad, Hidden Valley salad dressings, Burt's Bees personal-care products, and Kingsford charcoal. Adding Purell puts it directly in the institutional health and hygiene space, giving the company a commercial sales channel it has never had before. Hospitals, schools, airports, office buildings -- these are customers that have been buying Purell products for 30 years and are unlikely to switch.
The stock yields around 5.5% at current prices and is trading at its lowest levels in years, down 37% from its 52-week high at one point in 2026. The dividend has never been cut, with 48 years of consecutive growth. There will be quarters where the numbers look messy while the ERP stabilizes and the Purell integration settles in. That messiness is the price of admission for buying a great consumer goods franchise at a real discount.
This is an easy stock to buy and hold forever.
Should you buy stock in McCormick right now?
Before you buy stock in McCormick, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and McCormick wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $439,847!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,342,065!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 968% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 211% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of June 6, 2026.
Micah Zimmerman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends McCormick. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Forget Timing the Market: Just Buy These Dividend Stocks and Hold Forever

Key Points
Consumer staples with pricing power are outperforming amid volatility, tariffs, and cautious spending.
Strategic mergers and spinoffs for McCormick and Keurig Dr Pepper are creating hidden value and long-term earnings catalysts.
Temporary market dislocations are offering attractive entry points into durable, global brands.
There's a reshuffling happening in the consumer sector. Market volatility, tariff pressure, and a cash-strapped consumer that's becoming more deliberate about spending have created a unique window. Companies with durable brands and pricing power are trading at levels that may not last.
Here are four stocks worth a serious look right now, this month, in May.
Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue »
1. Coca-Cola
When a company operating in nearly every country on earth beats revenue and earnings per share (EPS) estimates and raises its full-year guidance, that's worth noting and potentially buying. Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) reported first-quarter 2026 results on April 28. It posted revenue of $12.47 billion, up 11.2% year over year, and comparable EPS of $0.86, beating consensus by 5.9%.The company then raised its full-year comparable EPS growth guidance to 8% to 9%, up from a prior range of 7% to 8%.
What's driving it isn't just price hikes. Unit case volume grew 3% globally -- meaning actual demand, not just dollar math, is expanding. For newer investors, unit case volume is the metric that proves pricing hasn't chased away customers. Coca-Cola also gained value share across sparkling beverages, water, sports drinks, coffee, and tea -- a rare broad sweep. Coca-Cola is a solid, slow buy that will only go higher over time.
2. Walmart
Walmart (NASDAQ: WMT) is somewhat of a tariff paradox to me. The company reports its fiscal Q1 2027 results on May 21, and the setup is unusually compelling. Here's the counterintuitive thesis: Tariff anxiety, which has spooked markets broadly, may actually be Walmart's ally. When people feel economic pressure, they trade down -- and they trade down to Walmart. High-income households (those earning over $100,000 annually) have been contributing meaningfully to Walmart's comparable sales gains, shifting from specialty grocers to its private-label brands. That trend is likely to continue as tariff costs seep into everyday prices across retail categories.
Over the last year or so, Walmart has also committed to keeping grocery prices "as low as [it] can," explicitly refusing to let tariff pressure on general merchandise flow through to food. This positioning directly targets the most frequency-driven category in retail.
3. McCormick
McCormick (NYSE: MKC) announced in late March that it will merge with Unilever's (NYSE: UL) foods business -- the division that owns Hellmann's, Knorr, and related brands -- creating a combined company with approximately $20 billion in annual revenue. The deal is expected to be accretive to McCormick's EPS in the first full year, with $600 million in expected annual run rate cost synergies. It significantly expands McCormick's footprint in emerging markets, including Brazil, China, and Europe. McCormick will retain its name, Maryland headquarters, and NYSE listing post-merger.
For a retail investor like me, this sounds kind of boring, but it is a sign that this stock was already inexpensive before the announcement and has now taken on a transformational catalyst that won't close until mid-2027. That timing creates a window. If you look at the stock's one-year price chart, it's not pretty right now, which is why I think now is a good time to start accumulating the stock.
There is a risk here of deal execution. Integrating a food division of this scale is complicated, and leverage will rise temporarily. But the long-term strategic logic -- dominant global spice and condiment brands under one roof -- is hard to argue with.
4. Keurig Dr Pepper
Keurig Dr Pepper (NASDAQ: KDP) closed its acquisition of JDE Peet's on April 1, creating a global coffee powerhouse spanning brands like Peet's, Jacobs, L'Oréal, and Keurig across more than 100 markets. More importantly for investors, the company has announced plans to separate into two independent, U.S.-listed businesses: A North American refreshment beverages company and a pure-play global coffee company, with the coffee spinoff planned for operational readiness by year-end 2026.
The Q1 2026 earnings report, released April 23, beat on both EPS and revenue, and the company reaffirmed full-year guidance for low-double-digit adjusted EPS growth in constant currency. The JDE Peet's deal is expected to be approximately 10% EPS accretive in its first full year. The separation is where the real value unlock lives: Two focused businesses, each with a distinct capital allocation story, attracting different investor bases.
Should you buy stock in Coca-Cola right now?
Before you buy stock in Coca-Cola, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Coca-Cola wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $473,985!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,204,650!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 950% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 203% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of May 6, 2026.
Micah Zimmerman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Walmart. The Motley Fool recommends McCormick and Unilever. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

The Best Stocks to Buy Right Now for May

Key Points
Procter & Gamble’s high margins and cash-flow support its growing payout.
The company is well positioned to weather an industry-wide slowdown.
Procter & Gamble’s valuation is at multiyear lows.
Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) just announced its 70th consecutive annual dividend raise, boosting its quarterly payout from $1.0568 per share to $1.0885 per share, or $4.354 per year -- good for a forward yield of 3% based on the share price at the time of this writing.
The dividend increase makes P&G one of the longest-tenured Dividend Kings, which are companies that have increased their payouts for at least 50 consecutive years. There are 57 Dividend Kings -- but only five of them have increased their dividends for at least 70 consecutive years.
Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue »
Here's why P&G is a top dividend-paying value stock to buy now.
P&G is in a league of its own
Procter & Gamble is the largest household and personal products company in the world and the third-largest U.S. consumer staples company by market cap -- behind Walmart and Costco Wholesale, but ahead of Coca-Cola.
P&G has a portfolio of leading brands across everyday-use categories spanning:
Diapers (led by Pampers)
Paper towels (Bounty)
Toilet paper (Charmin)
Tissues (Puffs)
Feminine products (led by Always)
Grooming and hair care (Gillette, Old Spice, Pantene, and Head & Shoulders, among others)
Cleaning products (Dawn, Cascade, Febreze, etc.)
Laundry detergents (Tide, Gain, and others)
Oral and personal healthcare products (Crest, Oral-B, Vicks, etc.)
Skin and personal care (Olay, SK-II, etc.)
P&G's international brand recognition, elite supply chain and marketing, and sheer size across categories give it impeccable pricing power and negotiating leverage with retailers. These advantages allow P&G to consistently generate operating margins above 20% -- often ahead of its peers.
Despite its competitive advantages, P&G's growth slowed in recent years due to consumer spending challenges driven by higher living costs and inflationary pressures, including higher everyday expenses and now elevated oil prices. P&G is generally considered a recession-proof business because demand for its products remains consistent across economic cycles. But consumers can change their behavior when budgets are strained and may opt to buy a private-label brand like Costco's Kirkland Signature diapers, for example, instead of Pampers to stretch their dollars.
A measured dividend increase
Given the state of P&G's business and the slowdown in the broader household and personal products industry, it's unsurprising that P&G's latest dividend raise was just a 3% increase. Historically, it's far more common to see P&G raise its dividend by mid-to-high single digits. But it's not unheard of for P&G to announce a low-single-digit raise.
The most recent example was 2023, when P&G coincidentally also raised its dividend by just 3%. This made sense at the time, given that P&G was coming off years of price increases and inflationary pressures were on the rise post-pandemic.
Maintaining a 70-year streak of dividend increases means P&G has to consistently grow its earnings and avoid outsized raises during particularly good years, because the last thing P&G wants is for the dividend expense to get so large that it gobbles up all its free cash flow (FCF).
P&G's dividend expense is still at a healthy level. Its trailing-12-month earnings per share of $6.75 and $6.09 in FCF per share easily cover its dividend, even after the latest raise. And the payout ratio of 61.9% is rock solid for a consumer staples company.
P&G is a uniquely flexible conglomerate
Aside from high margins, earnings, and FCF, what makes P&G such an elite dividend stock is its ability to take what the market gives it by leaning into whatever product categories and geographic regions are doing well.
For example, in P&G's latest quarter, which was the second quarter of fiscal 2026, Latin America and Europe helped offset weak performance in North America. Hair care was P&G's best category, and skin and personal care, personal healthcare, home care, and oral care also helped pick up the slack from weak performances in grooming, fabric care, baby care, feminine care, and daily care.
P&G doesn't rely too heavily on any particular region or product category. And even within specific categories, it can retain a customer sale even during spending pullbacks. For example, a customer may pivot from Tide to a generally less expensive detergent brand like Gain to cut costs, or from Pampers to Luvs. But P&G still lands the sale because it owns both the premium-priced category option and a more budget-friendly choice.
A top stock to buy and hold
P&G is one of the most reliable dividend stocks for value investors to buy and hold. But P&G rarely trades at a discount to the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC), given its quality.
Now is an incredible opportunity for investors to buy P&G on sale. The sell-off in the stock has pushed its yield to around a five-year high and the valuation down to a five-year low. P&G sports a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of just 21.4 and a forward P/E of 20.8 compared to 20.3 for the S&P 500.
Add it all up, and P&G checks all the boxes of a dividend stock that can anchor a passive income portfolio.
Should you buy stock in Procter & Gamble right now?
Before you buy stock in Procter & Gamble, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Procter & Gamble wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $581,304!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,215,992!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 1,016% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 197% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
Daniel Foelber has positions in Estée Lauder Companies, Kenvue, Kimberly-Clark, and Procter & Gamble. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Colgate-Palmolive, Costco Wholesale, Kenvue, and Walmart. The Motley Fool recommends Unilever. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Meet the Dividend King That Just Raised Its Payout For the 70th Consecutive Year. Here's Why It's a No-Brainer Buy Before the End of April.

Legendary investor Warren Buffett advises to be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful. One way we can try to measure the level of fear in a given stock is through a technical analysis indicator called the Relative Strength Index, or RSI, which measures momentum on a scale of zero to 100. A stock is considered to be oversold if the RSI reading falls below 30.
In trading on Thursday, shares of Unilever plc (Symbol: UL) entered into oversold territory, hitting an RSI reading of 29.5, after changing hands as low as $57.18 per share. By comparison, the current RSI reading of the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) is 68.3. A bullish investor could look at UL's 29.5 RSI reading today as a sign that the recent heavy selling is in the process of exhausting itself, and begin to look for entry point opportunities on the buy side. The chart below shows the one year performance of UL shares:
Looking at the chart above, UL's low point in its 52 week range is $54.95 per share, with $74.975 as the 52 week high point — that compares with a last trade of $57.28.
Never miss the next high-yield opportunity: Preferred Stock Alerts sends timely, actionable picks on income-producing preferred stocks and baby bonds, straight to your inbox.
Also see:
Dividend Articles
SCVL Videos
Cheap Stocks Channel
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Oversold Conditions For Unilever (UL)

A $2 Trillion IPO and the Space Economy

The Procter & Gamble Company PG has been gaining by leveraging its solid market position and focusing on productivity and cost-efficiency. However, its current forward 12-month price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 20.3X raises questions about whether the stock is fairly valued. This multiple is significantly higher than the Zacks Consumer Products – Staples industry average of 17.76X, making the stock appear relatively expensive.
The price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of Procter & Gamble, a distinguished name in the consumer staples sector, is 3.85X, above the industry’s multiple of 2.19X. This adds to investor unease, especially considering its Value Score of D, which suggests that it may not be a strong value proposition at current levels.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
PG’s Premium Valuation Surpasses Peers
At 20.3X P/E, Procter & Gamble is trading at a valuation much higher than its competitors. The company’s peers like The Clorox Company CLX, Unilever PLC UL and Albertsons Companies, Inc. ACI have experienced declines and are delivering solid growth and trade at more reasonable multiples. Clorox, Unilever and Albertsons Companies have forward 12-month P/E ratios of 16.07X, 15.85X and 0.12X — all significantly lower than that of PG. At such levels, Procter & Gamble’s valuation seems out of step with its growth trajectory.
The PG stock’s premium valuation suggests that investors have strong expectations for its growth. However, the stock currently seems somewhat overvalued. Procter & Gamble’s ability to meet or exceed these lofty expectations is crucial in justifying its premium pricing.
In the past three months, the company’s shares have risen 3.4%, against the broader industry’s decline of 0.4%. The company has outperformed the Zacks Consumer Staples sector and the S&P 500’s declines of 3.5% and 3%, respectively.
Procter & Gamble’s performance is better than that of its competitors, including Clorox’s 1.4% growth and Unilever’s 8.9% decline in the past three months. However, PG has underperformed Albertsons Companies, which rose 4.9% in the same period.
PG’s current share price of $146.66 trades 14.6% below its recent 52-week high mark of $171.65. The stock trades 6.6% above its 52-week low of $137.62.
Procter & Gamble trades below its 50 and 200-day moving averages, indicating bearish sentiment. The moving average is an important indicator for gauging market trends and momentum.
Procter & Gamble Trades Below 50 & 200-Day SMA
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
PG’s Growth Drivers vs. Market Challenges
Procter & Gamble’s growth strategy is centered on innovation, brand superiority and geographic expansion, but near-term performance remains constrained by softer consumer demand and competitive pressures. Management highlighted that growth outside the United States remains encouraging, with most regions delivering organic sales gains and benefiting from targeted innovation and improved execution.
The company is leaning on consumer-insight-driven product launches, such as premium Baby Care and fabric enhancer innovations, alongside stronger brand communication and in-store execution to drive category growth and share gains. These initiatives, supported by productivity improvements and reinvestment in innovation, are expected to fuel stronger performance in the second half of fiscal 2026.
PG is also advancing a longer-term reinvention strategy built on superior data, AI-enabled innovation and deeper integration with retail partners. Management emphasized leveraging extensive consumer data, advanced R&D capabilities and supply-chain platforms to accelerate product development and enhance marketing effectiveness across channels. The company aims to strengthen brand engagement across fragmented media platforms while improving value propositions to drive household penetration and usage growth.
However, the growth outlook is tempered by persistent market challenges. Consumer spending remains pressured by inflation across essential categories, while media fragmentation and evolving retail dynamics complicate brand building. Usage growth has been slow, with volume trends largely flat in key markets, reflecting cautious consumer behavior and reliance on pricing-led growth in recent years.
Additionally, aggressive competition, geopolitical uncertainty and tariff-related cost headwinds are expected to weigh on margins and limit near-term acceleration. Despite these hurdles, PG expects innovation-led interventions and improved execution to gradually restore growth momentum.
PG’s Estimate Revision Trend
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Procter & Gamble’s fiscal 2026 EPS has been unchanged in the past 30 days. Meanwhile, the consensus mark for EPS has moved down 0.3% in the past seven days. However, revenue and EPS estimates for fiscal 2026 and 2027 indicate year-over-year growth.
For fiscal 2026, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for PG’s revenues and EPS implies year-over-year growth of 2.9% and 2.1%, respectively. The consensus mark for fiscal 2027 revenues and EPS indicates 2.6% and 4.5% year-over-year rallies, respectively.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Is Procter & Gamble a Lucrative Buy Now?
Procter & Gamble remains a high-quality consumer staples name, backed by strong brands, innovation and productivity initiatives. Its reinvention strategy and international growth opportunities support long-term prospects. However, soft demand, flat volume trends and competitive pressures continue to weigh on near-term performance.
The stock’s premium valuation, with elevated P/E and P/S multiples versus peers, suggests much of the optimism is already priced in. Earnings growth expectations remain modest, limiting upside potential. While PG remains a solid long-term compounder, near-term investors may stay cautious. Existing shareholders may consider retaining this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) stock in their portfolios, while awaiting clearer signs of earnings reacceleration. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Zacks Names #1 Semiconductor Stock
This under-the-radar company specializes in semiconductor products that titans like NVIDIA don't build. It's uniquely positioned to take advantage of the next growth stage of this market. And it's just beginning to enter the spotlight, which is exactly where you want to be.
With strong earnings growth and an expanding customer base, it's positioned to feed the rampant demand for Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Internet of Things. Global semiconductor manufacturing is projected to explode from $452 billion in 2021 to $971 billion by 2028.
See This Stock Now for Free >>
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Procter & Gamble's Premium Valuation: Buy Now or Stay on Sidelines?

In this episode of Motley Fool Money, Motley Fool contributors Tyler Crowe, Matt Frankel, and Lou Whiteman discuss:
Sysco’s $26 billion deal for Restaurant Depot.
McCormick’s $44 billion deal for Unilever’s food division.
The track record of major consumer brand mergers.
Eli Lilly acquiring Centessa Pharmaceuticals.
Listener question: Thoughts on Whirlpool?
To catch full episodes of all The Motley Fool's free podcasts, check out our podcast center. When you're ready to invest, check out this top 10 list of stocks to buy.
Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue »
A full transcript is below.
Where to invest $1,000 right now
When our analyst team has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, Stock Advisor’s total average return is 928%* — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 186% for the S&P 500.
They just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy right now, available when you join Stock Advisor.
*Stock Advisor returns as of April 8, 2026.
This podcast was recorded on March 31, 2026.
Tyler Crowe: It is merger mania this week. Welcome to Motley Fool Money. I'm Tyler Crowe, and today I'm joined by longtime Fool contributors, Matt Frankel and Lou Whiteman, with three of us being part of the Hidden Gems team here at Motley Fool. As we said, there has been a lot of movement in the merger and acquisition field in the past couple of days, and we're going to try to break down as many of those deals as we can. Also, we're going to get to some listener questions. But to start, let's go with a lot of the deals that's going on in the food industry because we had two doozies. There must have been like, a lot of lawyers and investment bankers putting in extra hours this past weekend because first, we got news on Monday that Sysco, the food distributor, not the networking hardware company. Was acquiring private retailer Restaurant Depot for $26 billion. We'll get into the details in a second here. But I think that was going to be the headline deal we were going to talk about. Then this morning, we had even bigger deal where McCormick basically said, "Hold my beer" because they decided to merge with Unilever's food division in a $44 billion deal. What makes it kind of striking is that McCormick itself is a $14 billion company, and Sysco as doing a $26 billion deal was a $30 billion company. These are massive transformative changes in pretty sleepy consumer brand food distribution businesses. Now, personally, as I looked at the initial deals, I was a little dubious. But if forced to choose, I would probably say the Sysco Deal looks a little bit better. But I wanted to turn to you guys and see what you guys thought of both of these. I'm going to start with you, Matt. Are either of these deals making Sysco or McCormick more attractive?
Matt Frankel: I'd agree that the Sysco Deal is the more interesting of the two to me. If you're not familiar, so Sysco is the largest food service distributor in the United States. I had a short career in the restaurant industry many years ago, and I worked at a total of four restaurants across two states, and Sysco is the primary food supplier for all of them, and that's among the other 700,000 restaurants it serves worldwide. It is a massive distribution network. It gives it a major efficiency advantage over its competitors. On the other hand, Restaurant Depot, it's a network of in person wholesale restaurant supply warehouses. Think of it as like a Costco or a Sam's club, but specifically for restaurants. It's carved out a very nice niche among restaurant owners who value flexibility and pricing, over the convenience of the national distributor Sysco.
Lou Whiteman: Now, as Matt says, Restaurant Depot is a much different business, arguably a better business, better margins, decent cash flow. It better be because Sysco's paying a price that's higher than Sysco's multiple. They are hoping to see their business improve because of Restaurant Depot. Real question for me is, can they get this done? Last time Sysco tried something like this with US Foods, anti trust got in the way. It's a decade later, and as I said, they are different businesses, but we'll see if it plays out. Tyler, I do have to say, though. You said interesting. To me, back when I was in deal making world, there was nothing more interesting than a reverse Morris Trust. McCormick gets it just for interest, just for that because they are doing this. They're using this cool thing where they are merging with part of Unilever, and Unilever gets to spin it off tax free. I'm real curious about this because it used to be deals like this made sense. Self space mattered. Jamming more things into a truck that's heading to the store. That gives you scale. That gives you synergies. That was supposed to matter. Recent history, including Kraft Heinz, and some other deals we can get to, it's less settled science now whether that works. Maybe this is an opportunity to find out how much of what went wrong in other deals was the management execution compared to just the strategy. The strategy could make sense. McCormick and paper, I think, is better managed, so I am at least curious to see how this plays out.
Tyler Crowe: To lose point, thinking about, like, jamming stuff into trucks, it certainly there is some sort of logic to what's going on here, but I feel like M&A activity specifically in consumer brands has been like that joke from the TV show Arrested Development. It became like an Internet memo. It's like, "Well, did it work out for them?" Then they go, "No, they delude themselves into thinking, will work, destroys value." But it could work for us. Every single time, I've been running through, like, the mental rolodex of consumer goods deals over the past decade, where you can say it was definitively a win for its investors. We mentioned Kraft Heinz. That was a blunder. The Anheuser-Busch InBev buying SAB Miller to unite the Beer World. That was not so great. Keuring Dr. Pepper Merger hasn't turned out too well, either. I mean, the jury's still out on this recent one with Kimberly Clark and Kenvue but I can't think of a major consumer brands deal where we're like, yes, really good stuff. Now, consumer brands is historically a defensive sector. The goal for some investors maybe just collect a dividend and call it a day. It's fine. That's what a lot of investors want. But aside from this track record of value destruction at these major brands has to be a red flag going into these deals, don't you think?
Lou Whiteman: My theory here is it's not the deals. It's the companies. The value of brands have been diminished over the course of the last 20 years or so. I blame the Internet, better flow of information, but who knows? But consumer goods to me today is a barbell. Most consumers will pay up for certain specific items, whether it's on holding shoes at any given moment or one just splurge. But otherwise, consumers are happy to buy generic. That's a nightmare for these mid tier brands, and that's most of what we're talking about with Kimberly Clark, Ken view, Kraft and Heinz. If that's the case, this is a bad move for McCormick. Honestly, I believe enough that I personally try not to invest in brands in the middle. The bottom line is, I don't think people still find value in buying, say, Tylenol versus Kroger brand, Tylenol. That's a problem for anyone selling these why distribution, but a little bit extra because it's a brand name products.
Matt Frankel: There have been a few decent examples of deals like this that have worked. Performance Food Group, getting back to the Sysco situation is one that looks really interesting. Ticker symbol is PFGC and 2019-2023, it acquired three of its major competitors, including Cheney Brothers, which is a big Sysco competitor. A major reason was to add new consumer segments, which is one of the reasons Sysco's acquiring restaurant warehouse. The stock is up 160% since the start of 2019, so I'd call that a pretty solid example and a pretty close parallel, but I completely see your point, there is a lot that can go wrong with these types of acquisitions, especially when a company like Sysco is taking on $21 billion of new debt to make it happen.
Tyler Crowe: Just for keeping score, too, the deal between Unilever and McCormick is also going to be taking on a rather considerable portion of debt, as well. Whatever happens with these, the question for the next couple of years is, how quickly can we get these debt levels back down to pay off and make these things worth their while? We will be watching that. Then after the break, we're going to look at another M&A deal, but completely unrelated industry.
Speaker 1: In January of 1915, Ernest Shackleton's ship Endurance became encased in the ice in the Weddle Sea. Through determination, grit, and savvy, Shackleton would lead his men through a brutal winter, then over hundreds of miles of Antarctic ice, followed by 800 miles across some of the roughest waters in the world. It is one of the most extraordinary and inspirational journeys in the history of exploration. Find this story and many others at the Explorers Podcast available wherever you get your podcast or at explorerspodcast.com.
Tyler Crowe: We're going to shift gears in the industries we're talking about. We're going to stick with M&A. Yesterday, Eli Lilly announced it was acquiring Centessa Pharmaceuticals. As the case with most biotech deals, it is contingent on Centessa a meeting some milestones. But assuming a Centessa hits them, the deal is worth approximately $7.8 billion. Now, I'm going to leave it to you, Matt, to get into the details of what it does. But Centessa is a clinical stage development company that's looking to treat narcolepsy. But why is Eli Lilly willing to fork over $7 billion for a company that doesn't really even have a commercial treatment yet?
Matt Frankel: Yeah, that's a really good question. As you mentioned, they're a clinical stage pharmaceutical. They develop treatments for rare diseases. It's not just narcolepsy. They have some other things in the pipeline, but that's their most promising candidate. They have a product that's in later stage trials. It just passed Phase 2 trial that was very promising. The main product, it looks like it's going to become the first to market treatment and the most effective for several forms of narcolepsy, and this is estimated to be a $5 billion market. It has several other treatments, like I mentioned in earlier trials, but that drug is why Lily's buying it. The idea is that Lily's capabilities can help it accelerate its time to market. If it's successful in obtaining FDA approval, which those milestones you mentioned, in order to get that full 7.8 billion, it would have to get FDA approval for all these forms from narcolepsy. If that happens, the treatment could be worth several times what Lily's paying for it. It's a big if, but that's the goal.
Lou Whiteman: That's why Lily's paying up for a company that doesn't have a commercial product yet. This is just a big part of how R&D works in the industry. I mean, look, I've seen estimates it's almost $2 billion that Big Pharma spends to get just one drug into production through clearance. If you can do closer to a sure thing for 7 or 8 billion, suddenly, it doesn't look too bad. In Lily's case, too, this is a proactive move to make sure that this does not become a one hit wonder or one product company. Right now, about 60% of Lily's revenue comes from GOP ones. If anything, given all of the trials they have for different treatments, trying to get other GLP treatments on label, that's likely to only go up from here. The nature of Pharma is all good things come to an end. You're constantly racing to stay ahead of a patent expiration cliff, investing in a prominent therapy outside of GOP ones. That makes a lot of sense, assuming their scientists think that there is a there here, and I'm going to leave it to their scientists and not me to say whether or not what they're buying really makes sense. Apparently, they think so.
Tyler Crowe: To that point, too, I'm not going to claim to be somebody who can read clinical trial data very well and say whether it's good or bad and the direction they're going. But as somebody who has invested in the space from time to time, there are some hard numbers that investors should think about when looking at clinical stage, pharmaceutical companies, and it's something around, like 20-30% of drug candidates that start a Phase 2 clinical trial. End up actually getting all the way through trials and FDA approval. You want to think of it as almost like companies with lots of shots on goal in their development pipeline, because, there's no far growing conclusion that any of these in particular ones are going to make it through. As we mentioned, there are some contingencies built into the deal that says, "Hey, you have to meet these milestones for us to actually pay out the number that we're seeing." I want to shift gears a little bit, talking about healthcare in general, I want to get you guys' thoughts, but I don't want to drift too far here. One thing that's hard to shake when looking at the industry right now is FDA approvals. The rules and processes for getting approvals look pretty different in this current administration than prior ones. I think we mentioned it on a prior show earlier this year, Moderna's CEO Stephane Bancel, said that it is scaling back clinical trials for its MRNA vaccines because it would be as his quote said, difficult to see return on investment. That was specifically tied to MRNA vaccines, and we know that the current administration's position on vaccines is very different than what we've had in the past. I know that both of you have some ties to the healthcare industry, through your families and stuff like that. But as you look at this space as investors, have the recent changes in FDA approvals maybe changed the way you think about investing in clinical stage companies, at least in the time being?
Matt Frankel: I generally avoid the pharmaceutical industry for the reasons that you mentioned, because only 20-30% of the drugs that pass phase two trials actually come to market. For me, it hasn't really changed the way I invest, personally, but it's definitely something that healthcare investors should take into account.
Lou Whiteman: I am due to family. For most of my career, I've been restricted by conflict of interest. I can't that's an easy answer for me. But I will say this. These are long term projects. It takes upwards of a decade to get some drugs through clearance. I don't think these companies have to worry about any one regime because usually, things have changed over the course of it. I think it's something for investors to be aware of, but I wouldn't lean into political wins, changes coming from the agency with cycle to cycle. I think that if the science is good, there's a ways to get it done. You focus on trying to figure out the science.
Tyler Crowe: After the break, we're going to dip into the mailbag. Quick reminder, we want to make you part of the conversation. If you have a stock or investing question for Matt, Lou, myself, or anyone else on the Motley Fool Money Show, you can now email us at podcast@fool.com. We'd love to have your mailbag segments whenever possible, so send in your questions and just remember to keep them foolish. That email again is podcast@fool.com. I'm going to read this listener question that we got a little while ago. It comes from VJ Cont. I apologize if I mispronounce any names. It's a guarantee it's going to happen whenever you do these mailbag sections. His question was, I want to get your perspective on the long term investment thesis of Whirlpool. The ticker is WHR. I'm drawn to the generous dividend, but also question the sustainability of the dividend, given its high debt load on the balance sheet. I also want in your opinion on the long term narrative of the company, given the international competitive environment in the large appliance sector. Thanks for the comments. Cheers. Matt, I want to start with you. Whirlpool. What is your take?
Matt Frankel: I mean, my short answer is the market doesn't seem too convinced on the long term thesis for Whirlpool, either. The stock is down more than 50% from its high. It's still a profitable business. It has a 6.9% dividend yield as we're recording this that's well covered by its earnings, and it trades for about 9.3 times trailing 12 month earnings and less than nine times forward earnings. It has about $6.5 billion of debt. I don't view that as an unreasonable debt load, especially because it's steadily declined for the past three years. Now, management has made some questionable decisions recently. I will say that. They did a dilutive capital raise about a month ago. It caused the stock to drop 15%. That was a good portion of that decline I mentioned. It's a solid business, a nice dividend stock to own, but it's not one to buy and forget.
Lou Whiteman: I think I'm with the market on this one. The bull case is a recovering housing market plus continued tariffs. Boost sales. I think we're quite early in the recovery of housing, and I'm not sure what to think on tariffs. Dividend does look okay for now, but remember, they already cut it in half last year, so they are willing to make the hard decisions. They did just raise capital in February. That makes things look better, but that speaks to a business that is not firing all cylinders. There's probably a trade to be done here, guys, because Matt's right, the business isn't going away, and there is probably, a bottom to bounce off of, especially with activism involved. But for me, I don't see this as an attractive long term investment. Too many the deck is stacked against them.
Tyler Crowe: As a company that we can say is sensitive to the economic headwinds or tailwinds of the housing industry, whether that be new construction or refurbishment or anything like that, it's going to take a while for something like Whirlpool to really turn around. All you have to do is look at mortgage originations or refinancing originations to see that the housing market is in a very slow space. As long as that is crawling along, it's hard to see Whirlpool making a really strong recovery. I think we're all in consensus here. There's probably a long term narrative somewhere, but with the headwinds that the company's facing, maybe just sit on the sidelines for a while. As always, people on the program may have interest in the stocks they talk about and the Motley Fool may have formal recommendations for or against, so don't buy or sell stocks based solely on what you hear. All personal finance content follows Motley Fool editorial standards and is not approved by advertisers. Advertisements are sponsored content and provided for informational purposes only. To see our full advertising disclosure, please check out our shows. Thanks for producer Dan Boyd and the rest of the Motley Fool team. For Matt Lou and myself, thanks for listening, and we'll chat again soon.
Matt Frankel, CFP has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Tyler Crowe has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Centessa Pharmaceuticals Plc, Costco Wholesale, Kenvue, McCormick, Moderna, Sysco, and Walmart. The Motley Fool recommends Kraft Heinz, Unilever, and Whirlpool. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Looks Like M&A Week in 3 Different Sectors

Key Points
McCormick is making a move to get even bigger in the center of the grocery store.
McCormick shareholders will own 35% of the new company.
Acquisitions are fraught with risks, but the strategic rationale here is clear.
Two of the most dominant companies at the center of your local supermarket are combining.
McCormick (NYSE: MKC), which is best known for its spices but also owns a wide range of condiments including Frank's RedHot and Cholula hot sauces, as well as French's mustard, is pairing up with Unilever's (NYSE: (NYSE: UL) foods division, which is driven by Hellmann's and Knorr, which makes seasoning, soups, and bouillon cubes.
Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue »
McCormick shareholders will own 35% of the new company, while Unilever shareholders will own 35%, and Unilever, the company, will get 9%. Unilever Foods is being valued at an enterprise value of $44.8 billion, or 13.8 times 2025 adjusted EBITDA. That same multiple gave McCormick an enterprise value of $21 billion.
Investors balked at the news as the stock tumbled shortly after it broke, and McCormick closed Tuesday's session down 6.1%. However, there is a clear strategic rationale to the deal. Let's take a closer look at the pros and cons.
Why the merger makes sense
Merging with Unilever Foods will only make McCormick more dominant in spices, seasonings, and condiments, strengthening its economies of scale, cross-selling opportunities, and allowing for cost cuts. Unilever will also contribute to McCormick's flavor solutions division, which develops custom seasonings and flavors for restaurants and sells directly to them as well.
McCormick argued that Unilever Foods' assets were "a highly complementary fit" for its brand portfolio. The move will also eliminate Unilever as a key competitor.
In the announcement, McCormick said the combined company expected to target a growth rate of 3%-5% in year 3, and cut about $600 million in annual costs. For year 3, it's targeting an operating margin of 23%-25%, up from 21% currently for the new company.
That all sounds bullish for the merger.
Why it might not create value
However, strategic rationale isn't enough for a merger to work on its own. The price also has to be right. With McCormick shareholders owning about one-third of the new company, that means Unilever Foods is being valued at twice as much, and that doesn't include the $15.7 billion in cash McCormick is paying.
Mergers are also fraught with culture clashes, integration challenges, and other such issues. Cutting $600 million in costs sounds good, but it might not be so easy to do without hurting parts of the business.
Large mergers also tend to be more unwieldy than smaller ones, and this is the largest such deal in the food industry in recent years.
The deal is expected to close by mid-2027. Expect McCormick to continue to make the case for the deal in the meantime.
Should you buy stock in McCormick right now?
Before you buy stock in McCormick, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and McCormick wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $518,530!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,069,165!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 915% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 183% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of April 1, 2026.
Jeremy Bowman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends McCormick. The Motley Fool recommends Unilever. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

McCormick Is Acquiring Unilever's Food Business for $45 Billion. Will This Send the Spice Giant's Stock Soaring?

Key Points
McCormick is combining with Unilever's food business.
The massive deal will enhance its scale, diversification, margins, and growth rates.
It also brings meaningful risks.
McCormick (NYSE: MKC) is spicing up its flavor profile. The global spice giant has agreed to combine with Unilever's (NYSE: UL) food business in a nearly $45 billion deal. It's a huge bite for the much smaller McCormick.
Here's a closer look at the merger and whether it's a smart move for the spice giant or if it could cause indigestion.
Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue »
Creating a global flavor-focused company
Global consumer products giant Unilever is separating its food business, which will then combine with McCormick in a cash-and-stock deal. Unilever and its shareholders will receive shares of McCormick equal to 65% of the combined company's value ($29.1 billion). Additionally, Unilever will receive $15.7 billion in cash. The companies expect the deal to close by the middle of next year. It values Unilever's food business at $44.8 billion, more than double McCormick's implied value ($21 billion).
The transaction will create a global flavor-focused company. It will combine McCormick's global flavor portfolio (McCormick-branded spices, French's mustard, Frank's RedHot sauces, and others) with Unilever's food brands, including Hellmann's and Knorr. The combined company will have over $20 billion in annual sales.
A lot to digest
The transformative transaction will accelerate McCormick's strategy of becoming a flavor-focused company. It has made several acquisitions over the years to grow its spice portfolio, expand internationally, and move into adjacent categories such as condiments and sauces. The combination with Unilever's food business will significantly increase its scale, diversify its business, accelerate its growth rate, and enhance its profitability.
McCormick expects to deliver $600 million in cost savings by combining with Unilever Foods within three years of closing the deal. The company also expects to accelerate its sales growth rate to 3%-5% annually by year three (up from 2% last year), while delivering faster earnings growth as its margins expand. That should enable McCormick to continue increasing its dividend. The spice maker extended its streak to 40 consecutive years in late 2025.
However, the deal isn't without risk. McCormick is acquiring a company more than twice its size, which adds meaningful integration and execution risk. Additionally, the combined company will initially have a rather high leverage ratio of 4.0 times, which could limit its financial flexibility. It aims to rapidly deleverage the balance sheet, targeting a ratio of around 3.0 times within two years and below that level over the long term.
A smart move
McCormick's proposed transaction to combine with Unilever's food business appears to be a wise strategic move. It will immediately increase its scale, diversification, profitability, and growth rates. While the massive deal adds integration, execution, and balance-sheet risks, they appear worthwhile given the potential long-term benefits of this combination.
Should you buy stock in McCormick right now?
Before you buy stock in McCormick, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and McCormick wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $501,381!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,012,581!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 880% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 178% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of March 31, 2026.
Matt DiLallo has positions in McCormick. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends McCormick. The Motley Fool recommends Unilever. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.