HUL shares gain nearly 2% after key announcements at board meeting

Shares of Hindustan Unilever (HUL) in early trade on Monday (December 4) were trading higher by 0.8 per cent at Rs 2,583.5 after the company's board meeting, which took place on December 1. At the day's high, the stock clinched levels of Rs 2,605.3, up 1.64 per cent over the previous close.
 
In its board meeting, the FMCG major announced some of the major decisions:
 
1. The company announced that its beauty and personal care division will transition into dedicated beauty and well-being (B&W) and personal care businesses. The change will come into force on April 1, 2024.
 
Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) on December 1 announced key changes and appointments to its Management Committee (MC), deepening the focus in the Beauty and Personal Care (BPC) division and reinforcing the digital agenda to make HUL even more future-ready.
 
2. Also, the company has announced a strategic partnership with Brookfield to set up a solar energy park with a 45 MW capacity in Rajasthan. This will help HUL in its journey towards net zero.
 
Shares of the company have underperformed, with a negative return of 2.9 per cent over the last one year.
 
The consensus recommendation on the counter from 39 analysts is 'Hold' with 14 of them suggesting a strong buy on the counter.
 
The one-year target, as per Trendlyne data, is set at Rs 2,833, a 10 per cent potential gain from the current market price.

Brokerage firm ICICI Securities has maintained an 'add' rating on the counter with a target price of Rs 2800. "Unilever Plc had embarked on a power brand strategy around CY2000 (30 power brands in India vs 63) and the results were suboptimal (revenue CAGR of ~4% over CY2000-10 and material market share losses). We note that while profit pay-offs may come early, revenue growth revival has its own gravity. We hope, “this time it’s different”," said the report.