Hindustan Unilever (HUL) share price saw a sharp slide in the early trade today, plunging to Rs 2,286, a drop of around 7% as the stock adjusted for the demerger of its ice-cream business, Kwality Wall’s India. The decline came right after a special pre-open session held to factor in the business separation, leading to a reset in HUL’s market value.
Hindustan Unilever (HUL) shareholders have a key date to mark on their calendars. Today, December 5, is the record date for the demerger of HUL’s ice cream business into a separate company, Kwality Wall’s (India) (KWIL).
Investors holding HUL shares as of today will be eligible to receive shares of the newly listed ice cream entity in a 1:1 ratio. December 4 was the last trading day for those looking to buy HUL shares and qualify for the allotment.
Let’s take a look at the key factors every investor need to know of this demerger –
HUL Demerger: What it means
The demerger separates HUL’s ice cream brands, including Kwality Wall’s, Cornetto, Magnum, Feast, and Creamy Delight, from the parent company.
Post-demerger, HUL will continue as a standalone FMCG company, while KWIL will become India’s first large-scale pure-play ice cream firm.
The development by the company is part of HUL’s strategy to separate its ice cream operations from its other businesses.
HUL Demerger: Shareholder entitlement
Under the approved scheme, the share entitlement ratio is like – one KWIL share for each HUL share held.
Because of the T+1 settlement rules, only investors who purchased HUL shares on or before December 4 will be considered eligible.
Shares will be credited to demat accounts once the demerger allotment process is completed.
HUL Demerger: Special pre-open session for price discovery
Both BSE and NSE will conduct a special pre-open session for HUL on December 5, running from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
This session is designed to determine HUL’s post-demerger share price by removing the ice cream business value from the stock.
HUL Demerger: Expected listing timeline of KWIL
Kwality Walls shares are expected to be listed on both the Indian bourses, BSE and NSE within 60 days from the allotment date. This indicates that the shares will likely be listed between late January and February 2026.
During this period, KWIL will temporarily be included in Nifty indices. This will be at a zero price with a dummy symbol for price discovery purposes.
Once listed, the company will trade independently, while HUL continues its operations unaffected.
HUL Demerger: What is the impact on indices
Following the demerger of the company, the Nifty 50 will temporarily feature 51 securities to account for KWIL’s inclusion at a dummy price.