Interpublic Group lost more ground in the third quarter, reporting an organic revenue decline of 0.4%. Organically IPG has been in the hole all year. For the first nine months, the company’s organic revenue decline was 0.8%. That compares to a gain of 8.2% for the year ago period. 

The company cited several reasons that continue to weigh on performance including a depressed tech sector that still is not spending at normal levels, underperforming digital agencies and persistent macroeconomic worries by clients. 

The firm said it did expect to achieve growth of approximately 1% in the fourth quarter, meaning full-year organic revenue could be roughly flat if that growth materializes.  

“During the third quarter, revenue performance did not measure up to expectations, yet we continued to demonstrate disciplined management of the business and to see positive contributions to growth from our media offerings, the health care sector, sports and experiential marketing, and public relations,” said IPG CEO Philippe Krakowsky.  

Krakowsky did note that IPG has had strong new business performance this year (including this week's win of the global General Mills media account) which should provide “tail winds” heading into next year. Reported net revenue for the first nine months was $6.81 billion, a decrease of 1.2% versus the same period a year ago.  

By region in Q3, the U.S. was down 1.2% organically and up 1.1% in international markets. 

By discipline, the firm’s media, data and engagement solutions were down a combined 0.5%. Intergrated advertising and creatively-led solutions were down 4.1% and specialized communication and experiential solutions were up 6.5%.