Blind leading the blind

11 October 2019 By Dasha Afanasieva Follow @dasha_reuters

The French group’s shares dropped 12% after its second revenue warning in three months. Traditional advertising is shrinking faster than new consulting-style services can grow. CEO Arthur Sadoun admits the outlook for 2020 is fuzzy. That shows in Publicis’ discounted valuation.

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Publicis Groupe on Oct. 10 warned that revenue would shrink by around 2.5% in the full year, after the French advertising group reported poor third-quarter results.

Revenue in the three months to Sept. 30 was 2.58 billion euros, up 17% year-on-year, but a decline of 2.7% after excluding the impact of acquisitions. Publicis said the lower-than-expected figure reflected a fall in spending by clients in the United States and a disappointing performance by its digital arm. It’s the second time in 2019 that Publicis has cut its financial guidance.

Publicis shares were down 12% at 37.44 euros by 0733 GMT on Oct. 11.

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