WPP's PR and public affairs units posted "slower" third quarter 2014 revenue of $342M, a 6.4% decline.
Across the board, WPP said Q3 revenue climbed 3.1% to $4.4B, lifted by an 11.7% gain in its advertising and media investment management business. The figures missed forecasts of 3.3%, but WPP affirmed its year-end expectations despite a cooler business climate in the second half of this year.
The ad/PR conglom's Q3 PR/PA figures swung positive to 0.1% growth and 0.3% growth when acquisitions and currency effects were excluded, respectively.
Through the first three quarters of 2014, WPP's PR operations – Burson-Marsteller, Ogilvy, Cohn & Wolfe, among others – are down 5.4% to just over $1B in revenue with a tangible slowdown in the second half.
WPP, led by CEO Martin Sorrell, said all regions except Continental Europe showed positive net sales growth in the quarter in PR/PA. Belgium, Finland, Germany and Norway were singled out as "challenging" environments. Content development in the US market was a plus for the PR/PA operations through its SJR digital operation.
WPP debt stands at $4.5B against nearly $1.5B in cash.
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