International giants plan to simplify

Article Excerpt

These two global leaders now plan to shrink their operations. That’s good news for investors, as stock markets tend to prefer—and reward—companies with easy-to-understand businesses rather than those with complex conglomerate structures. Even so, we prefer Unilever over Sony for your new buying. UNILEVER PLC (ADR) $47 is a spinoff buy. The company (New York symbol UL; Consumer sector; ADRs outstanding: 2.5 billion; Market cap: $117.5 billion; Dividend yield: 4.0%; Takeover Target Rating: Medium; www.unilever.com) is one of the world’s largest makers of branded and packaged consumer goods. Its over 400 brands include Dove (skin cream), Pepsodent (toothpaste), Hellmann’s (mayonnaise), Knorr (bouillon cubes) and Sunlight (detergent). To simplify its operations and unlock value for investors, Unilever now plans to set up its ice cream operations as a separate company. That division’s brands include Wall’s, Magnum, and Ben & Jerry’s. In 2023, the ice cream business supplied 13% of the company’s sales, and 9% of its earnings. Its main markets are the U.S., the U.K., Turkey, Germany and…