MARKET TALK: BOA Merrill Lowers Unilever To Neutral

17th Jun 2010 07:52

0652 GMT [Dow Jones] Bank of America Merrill Lynch downgrades Unilever (UN) to neutral from buy. "We raise our 12-month price objective to EUR26.5 [from EUR25.0] to reflect the higher estimates but cut our rating to neutral reflecting lower relative upside within our consumer staples universe," says the brokerage. Says recent forex movements, particularly for the stronger US dollar and emerging market currencies lead the brokerage to revise earnings forecasts for Unilever. Says earnings estimates increase by 3% in FY '10 and by 4% in FY '11/'12 to incorporate a EUR/USD exchange rate of $1.22 and sterling/dollar rate of $1.48. Shares closed at EUR23.37 in Amsterdam, and at 1914p in London. ([email protected]) Contact us in London. +44-20-7842-9464 [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 17, 2010 02:52 ET (06:52 GMT)