Publicis Groupe up 20% for FY2022, as Q4 surpasses expectations
Publicis Group has delivered a net revenue of EUR12.57 billion (AU$19.38 billion) in its full year 2022 financial results, up 20% on 2021. Net revenue in the fourth quarter 2022 was EUR3.46 billion.
The French holding company named its growing data and technology capabilities (representing a third of Publicis Groupe’s revenue), go-to-market positioning and platform organisation as the major factors contributing the Groupe’s growth despite challenging macroeconomic conditions.
Publicis Groupe chairman and CEO, Arthur Sadoun, said: “For the second year in a row, we delivered double-digit organic growth and record-high financials, with Q4 well ahead of expectations.”
He continued: “Thanks to our data and technology capabilities, which now represent a third of our revenue, we have been able to continue to capture the shift in our clients’ spend towards first party data management, commerce and business transformation. This can be seen in Epsilon and Publicis Sapient’s annual numbers, with organic growth of +12% and +19% respectively. That dynamic has also boosted our creative and media business, and is reflected in all of our regions, with the U.S. at +10%, APAC at +6.5% and Europe at +12.3% for the year.”
“Our go-to-market, positioning Publicis as a key partner in our clients’ transformation, means we have won more than our share of new business opportunities, and topped the rankings for the fourth time in the past five years.
“Last but not least, our unique platform organisation, with our global delivery centres, our shared services and our country model, powered by Marcel, allowed us to deliver best in class financial ratios while maintaining record high bonuses and rewarding everyone in our group. Our operating margin rate came in at 18%, free cash flow at EUR1.7 billion, while our headline earnings per share (EPS) grew by 26%, allowing us to propose a dividend of EUR2.90 per share.”
Figures are in EUR million, except per-share data and percentages.
For the FY2022, Public Group reported an operating margin rate of 18% and a headline EPS of EUR6.35, up 26% on the previous year.
Sadoun said the agency group expected to sustain this momentum in 2023, with forecasts to deliver 3% to 5% organic growth and maintain an operating margin between 17.5% and 18%.
During the reporting period, organic growth was 10.1%, despite a slight drop in momentum in Q4, which saw 9.4% organic growth compared to 10.3% in Q3.
Overall, Q4 for brought in a net revenue of EUR3.46 billion (A$5.34 billion) for the Groupe, up 18% on the previous quarter.
All regions saw growth upwards of 13% compared to 2021, with Asia Pacific growing 13.3% on a reported basis and 6.5% on an organic basis. China organic growth accelerated through the year to record 6.6%, despite the lockdowns.
The APAC region had a net revenue of EUR1.18 billion (A$1.81 billion), compared to EUR1.04 billion (A$1.60 billion) in 2021.
Public Groupe’s shared price is EUR 70.78 today.
The holding company’s market cap today sits at €18.47 billion (A$28.48 billion).
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