Publicis Groupe reported a net revenue gain of 5.6% to 3.42 billion euros for the third quarter, with organic growth (which excludes currency and M&A impact) of 5.8%.  

The company released its earnings two days after Omnicom, which reported a 6.5% organic gain for the quarter. However, as noted by marketing research firm Madison & Wall, Omnicom’s growth figure was based on gross revenue which includes pass-through costs such as those related to principal-based trading, while other groups, including Publicis, base organic growth rates on net revenues that exclude those costs.  

Omnicom doesn’t report net figures but according to M&W’s calculations (which factored in third-party service costs) “Omnicom’s organic revenue would have been closer to 3% rather than the as-reported 6.5% figure” based on gross numbers.  

Publicis said it was upgrading its full-year 2024 organic growth guidance to at least 5.5%, versus the previously stated 5% despite what it termed “a macroeconomic environment that became more challenging over the quarter.”  

By region the Groupe’s Q3 organic revenue growth numbers were: North America (4.7%), Europe (4.9%); Asia Pacific (6.4%); Middle East & Africa (13.6%); Latin America (30.3%). 

The U.S. posted growth of 4%, with media and Epsilon combined contributing incremental growth while transformation unit Publicis Sapient posted a slight decline. Creative activities were reportedly up in the mid-single digits. 

Organic growth for the first nine months was 5.6%. 

Company CEO Arthur Sadoun characterized Q3 results as very strong and asserted that with the firm’s upgraded guidance “we should outperform the industry by 400 basis points on average in 2024.” 

Sadoun confirmed that the company invested $1 billion combined on the Q3 acquisitions of Influential and Mars United Commerce in a bid to further bulk up its creator and commerce capabilities. Coupled with its strength in addressable media, “we are then able to directly link this expertise with Epsilon’s identities around the world to create a connected media ecosystem that we can build transparently within our client’s owned environments.” That offering, he added, “makes us confident in our ability to continue to outperform the market in 2024” and beyond.