Publicis Groupe reports 4.9% growth in net revenue in Q1 of 2024, Organic growth reaches +5.3%

Publicis has unveiled its revenue for the first quarter of 2024. Publicis Groupe’s net revenue in Q1 2024 was 3,230 million euros, up +4.9% from 3,079 million euros in 2023. Exchange rates had a negative impact of 29 million euros. Acquisitions, net of disposals, accounted for an increase in net revenue of 18 million euros. Organic growth reached +5.3%.

Arthur Sadoun, Chairman and CEO of Publicis Groupe expressed, “Publicis had a very strong start to 2024, sustaining growth momentum despite ongoing macroeconomic tensions. We accelerated our organic growth this quarter, delivering +5.3%, ahead of expectations. There were three clear drivers of this performance. First, our ability to capture a disproportionate part of the increasing demand for data-led marketing transformation, boosted by AI, in a soon-to-be-cookieless world. This translated into the double-digit growth of our combined Epsilon and Publicis Media offer. Second, continued new business tailwinds, coming after we topped the league tables once again, and as we have for the past five years. Last but not least, the impact of a clear rebound in the tech sector, where we saw double-digit growth this quarter.” 

Key Highlights:

• Accelerated Growth: Publicis achieved organic growth of +5.3% this quarter, surpassing expectations.

• Drivers of Growth:

• Data-led Marketing: Publicis capitalized on the rising demand for data-led marketing transformation, especially with AI, in anticipation of a cookieless digital world. The combined Epsilon and Publicis Media offer saw double-digit growth.

• New Business Wins: Publicis continued to excel in securing new business opportunities, maintaining its position at the top of league tables.

• Tech Sector Rebound: A resurgence in the tech sector contributed to double-digit growth for Publicis this quarter.

• Business Segments Performance:

• Publicis Sapient: Recorded positive growth in the U.S. despite cautious client spending in the IT consultancy sector.

• Creative: Demonstrated resilience with single-digit growth driven by new business and production.

• Regional Performance: All regions performed well, with notable acceleration in Asia, particularly in China.

Financial Highlights:

• Net Revenue: Reached 3,230 million euros, up +4.9% compared to the previous year, with organic growth at +5.3%.

• Regional Breakdown: North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, and Latin America all contributed to growth.

• Debt and Liquidity: Net debt totaled 445 million euros, with solid liquidity at 4.9 billion euros.

Strategic Moves:

• Publicis made strategic acquisitions to strengthen its capabilities, including AKA Asia and Spinnaker SCA.

• The introduction of CoreAI aims to infuse AI across the organization, positioning Publicis as an AI-powered Intelligent System.

Outlook:

Despite macroeconomic uncertainties, Publicis maintains confidence in achieving its 2024 targets, including organic growth between +4% to +5% and maintaining financial ratios.

Sadoun added, “After extracting ourselves from the pack in 2023, we clearly carried that momentum into Q1. We expect this to be our 8th consecutive quarter of delivering the highest growth in the industry, leading to material market share gains. Now, looking at the rest of the year, we are focused on maintaining this dynamic. In what is a still-challenging environment, our leadership in personalization at scale, our new business wins and our platform organization, make us confident in confirming our 2024 guidance. We once again expect to grow twice as fast as the industry average, while delivering the best financial KPIs. I would like to take this opportunity to thank our clients for their trust and our people for their outstanding efforts.”