FTSE 100 news / Companies and sectors / Consumer staples / 8 October 2026
Consumer staples: sector news on Thursday 8 October 2026
Average tone +1.5 (slightly positive) across 8 companies with relevant coverage, from 69 stories.
Company by company
| Company | Tone | Stories | What the coverage was about |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unilever | +1.7 | 21 | Coverage was mixed, with UBS cutting its price target and reiterating Sell, while Barclays kept Buy. |
| Associated British Foods | −2.8 | 12 | Coverage was dominated by Primark's recall of Halloween decorations over asbestos fears, which leans negative. |
| Diageo | −3.3 | 10 | Coverage centred on the Guinness Baltimore brewery closure with 174 layoffs, and an escalating strike at Cameronbridge as job cuts loom. |
| Imperial Brands | +7.8 | 10 | Coverage centred on Imperial Brands affirming its FY26 guidance in a pre-close trading update and launching a new £1.5 billion share buyback. |
| British American Tobacco | +2.8 | 7 | Coverage mainly focused on BAT's share price moves and its share buyback programme, with a bank appointed to run repurchases and a recent 1.6% rise. |
| Reckitt | +10.0 | 7 | Coverage centred on Goldman Sachs upgrading Reckitt to Buy with a 6,500p target, with shares rising, alongside reports of impressive earnings and a packaging design award. |
| Coca-Cola Europacific Partners | 0.0 | 1 | Coverage was thin, with only a factual company profile page naming Coca-Cola Europacific Partners. |
| Coca-Cola HBC | −4.7 | 1 | The only relevant coverage noted that Coca-Cola HBC shares crossed below their 200-day moving average, which leans slightly negative. |
Strongest stories in the sector
- +10.0 Goldman Sachs Upgrades Reckitt to Buy With 6,500p Target as Shares Rise 1.9%
Goldman upgrade to Buy with 6,500p target, shares rise - +10.0 Goldman upgrades Reckitt as emerging markets, new products drive growth
Goldman upgrade citing emerging markets and new product growth - +10.0 Why Did FTSE 100 Group Reckitt (LSE:RKT) Earnings Impress the London Market?
Earnings reported as impressing the London market - +9.2 Imperial Brands Affirms FY26 Guidance; Launches £1.5 Bln Share Buyback For FY27
Guidance affirmed, new £1.5bn buyback launched - +9.2 Imperial Brands on track for FY26 guidance, announces £1.5 billion buyback
On-track guidance and large new buyback announced - +9.0 Imperial Brands On Track For FY26 Guidance As £1.5bn Share Buyback Announced
On-track guidance plus £1.5bn buyback - +8.8 Imperial Brands Confirms Annual Outlook and $2 Billion Share Buyback
Outlook confirmed with sizeable buyback - +8.7 UK's Imperial Brands affirms annual outlook, launches $2 billion share buyback
Annual outlook affirmed, big buyback launched - −8.3 Diageo Cameronbridge strike escalates as job cuts loom
Strike escalating at Cameronbridge with job cuts looming. - −7.5 Primark recalls Halloween witch toys over asbestos fears
Primark product recall over asbestos fears hurts reputation - +7.5 Why is Reckitt Benckiser stock up 1.5% today?
Shares up 1.5% on the day - −7.3 Primark issues urgent recall for Halloween products over asbestos risk
Urgent Primark recall over asbestos risk