DIGIVESTASI - PT Unilever Indonesia Tbk. (UNVR) stock trading millions of shares are observed to be held by a number of investors ahead of 2024. Overall, 19 out of 31 analysts covering UNVR stock have a hold recommendation until Wednesday (October 1, 2024). The remaining 5 analysts gave a buy rating and 7 analysts gave a sell rating. 

The opinion of the majority of analysts did not prevent some large investors from buying UNVR shares. In addition, the movement recorded was further revised by about 2.27% since the beginning of 2024 and even by 26.44% last year. Based on Bloomberg data, there are confidential institutional investors who have recently bought millions of UNVR shares. For example, JPMorgan Chase & Co just bought 12.14 million UNVR shares on Wednesday (October 1, 2024). After the transaction, the number of shares owned was 65.62 million shares. Also in this session, Deutsche Bank AG bought 9.7 million UNVR shares.

As a result, the number of victims increased to 13.04 million. Next, State Street Corp also recently increased its holdings to 2.93 million UNVR shares. So, they currently hold 28.33 million shares. Not to be outdone, David Booth Cs through Dimensional Fund Advisors LP added 5.64 million UNVR shares on Tuesday (January 9, 2024). Currently, the reduced number is 43.97 million.

In research published in early January 2024, PT Bahana Sekuritas analyst team Christine Natasya and Elisabeth Angelina recommended holding UNVR shares. The target price was lowered from Rp 4,100 to Rp 3,700. Bahana Sekuritas still expects revenue growth to slow amid increased competition, uncertainty due to changes in the composition of the board of directors, and the potential impact of ongoing conflicts in the Middle East. On the other hand, PT Indo Premier Sekuritas' analyst team, Lukito Supriadi and Andrianto Saputra, downgraded UNVR's stock rating to hold thanks to a study published in early January 2024.

The target price was lowered from the previous IDR 4,900 to IDR 3,500. "UNVR has never benefited from election expenses. Therefore, we lower our rating to maintain a lower target price of IDR 3,500," wrote the Indo Premier Sekuritas team.

In previous business news, Bloomberg Intelligence's Technology & Consumer analysis team, Catherine Lim and Trini Tan, recently shared their thoughts on the outlook for UNVR stock. Lim and Tan highlighted the opportunity for Unilever Indonesia to make more money in the food segment. "Unilever Indonesia can invest in new food categories to increase revenue and profits as business demand from restaurant and hotel companies in Indonesia increases in 2024," Lim and Tan wrote as quoted by Bloomberg, Wednesday (November 29, 2023). Furthermore, Bloomberg Intelligence assessed that Unilever Indonesia's profit was due to lower raw material prices.

Lim and Tan said Unilever Indonesia's margins are likely to increase until December 2023 and beyond depending on the prices of raw materials such as palm oil and chemicals being lower than the increase in the 2022 period. "A decline in key commodity prices from all-time highs in 2022, such as coffee and cocoa, will help [Unilever Indonesia] ease pressure on profit margins," wrote the Bloomberg Intelligence analyst team. ". As a long-term growth driver, Bloomberg Intelligence highlights that increased sales of more profitable food products could help Unilever Indonesia generate higher margins in this segment over the next two years.

Waiting for Benjie Yap's push to strengthen Unilever Indonesia (UNVR) Meanwhile, Unilever Indonesia's Extraordinary General Meeting of Shareholders (EGMS) held in December 2023 gave the green light for the appointment of Benjie Yap as Chairman and Director of the company effective from January 2024. Unilever Indonesia Director and Secretary Nurdiana Darus said the management changes and the new organizational framework of Unilever Compass have brought UNVR into a new chapter to further maximize the potential for sustainable growth.

Today's meeting officially approved Benjie Yap as chairman and director of the company, she said in an official statement received by Bisnis, Tuesday (December 19, 2023). Nurdiana said Benjie Yap has a diverse range of skills gained from his previous roles at Unilever, including research and development, strategy, supply chain, marketing and brand management, and customer development. "Benjie Yap has recorded impressive achievements, especially his role as CEO of Unilever Philippines. "We are confident that he will bring valuable expertise and contributions to society and the industry," he explained.

Some time ago, Bahana Sekuritas had made a prediction about the impact of Yap's presence in the top position of Unilever Indonesia. Yap is expected to be a figure who can transform Unilever's business operations in Indonesia. The former CEO of Unilever Philippines has a research and development background with experience in maintaining a dominant market share in the Philippines and launching Surf's Sunfresh detergent. In addition, Bahana Sekuritas believes Yap has demonstrated his ability to predict future business prospects by capitalizing on evolving trends.

One of his solutions is to convert detergent into powder bars. In response to its strong market share, Unilever Philippines invested about Rp 1.3 trillion in industrial facilities to increase production of market-leading hair care products such as Sunsilk and Creamsilk for Rexona and Dove. In addition, Yap has leadership experience in the Philippines, including serving as marketing director of home care products as well as general manager of the food business. "His experience could be a turning point in UNVR's earnings performance for the HPC and F&R segments," Bahana Sekuritas wrote.