As expected, international operations remained a drag on Dentsu Group’s financial performance in the third quarter and first nine months of the year. The company reported organic revenue growth in the third quarter of 1.4% with growth for the first nine months of 0.3%. Net revenue for the first three quarters was approximately $5.5 billion, down 1.7%.   

The organic growth outlook for the full year remains unchanged at roughly flat.   

The firm said it was continuing to explore “strategic alternatives” for its international operations, including a possible sale of those operations or partnerships with third parties.   

Press reports in August indicated that the firm had hired Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley and Nomura Securities to help explore the possible sale of its international operations or partnerships to run them.   

Organic growth for the company’s Japan operations was 9.9% for Q3 and 6.8% for the first nine months. The Americas posted a 3.4% organic decline in both the quarterly and nine-month periods.  

In its presentation to analysts the firm discussed its “media++” strategy described as “a strategy that integrates CXM, Creative, and Data & Technology capabilities into the core Media business, delivering high-value, growth-driven solutions tailored to each client’s needs.”  

The firm said that the strategy contributed to wins including Dollar General, BMW and Vodafone. “We will continue to position the Media++ strategy as a key growth driver and further strengthen internal investment in this area,” the firm stated in presentation materials.  

The company said it expected to reduce costs this year by about 52 billion JPY ($337 million) to help achieve an operating margin of 16-17% in FY2027.  

In 2025 the firm is investing 12 billion JPY ($78 million) in AI, and data & technology businesses.