Unilever’s (LON:ULVR) share price fell over 5 percent on Thursday, after natural disasters in the Americas and poor weather in Europe negatively affected its third quarter figures.
The company reported a 1.6 percent decline in turnover to €13.2 billion in the third quarter, with the stronger euro having a currency impact of 5.1 percent.
Underlying sales growth rose 2.6 percent, weaker than the previous quarter’s 3 percent rise and below analysts expectations. However the company experienced a surge of growth in its Emerging Markets division, in which underlying sales rose by 6.3 percent.
In a statement, Unilever’s CEO Paul Polman said: “For the full year, we continue to expect underlying sales growth within the 3 – 5% range, an improvement in underlying operating margin of at least 100 basis points and strong cash flow.”\
Shares in Unilever, who recently fought off a takeover from American food giant Kraft Heinz, are currently trading down 4.99 percent at 4,321.17 (1516GMT).