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| John Wren |
Omnicom today reported a 1.8 percent dip in Q1 revenues to $3.4B and a 1.9 percent slide in net income to $258.1M as the COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the ad/PR giant's business.
CEO John Wren noted that COVID-19 travel restrictions, bans on large public gatherings, shelter-in-place orders and mandatory shutdowns hit OMC's travel, lodging, entertainment, oil & gas, automotive and retail clients.
He noted that healthcare, technology, telecom, financial services and consumer goods clients fared relatively well, but face volatile conditions and uncertainty ahead.
Wren told investors that OMC will act quickly to further cut costs but savings will be somewhat offset "by the decline in revenues we expect in in he second quarter and for the remainder of the year."
He promised to identify underperforming and non-core businesses and either realign or get rid of them.
OMC PR group, which includes Cone, Marina Maher Communications, Portland, Mercury, Access, Porter Novelli, FleishmanHillard and Ketchum, registered 0.7 percent growth to $331.6M.
Organic growth inched ahead 0.2 percent.
Hut 8, energy infrastructure platform, has named NextEra Energy's Mark Eidelman head of IR and SVP of strategic finance.
Teneo handles easyJet as Minneapolis investment firm Castlelake mulls a possible takeover of the British budget airline.
Brunswick Group represents Universal Music Group as it rejects the unsolicited $65B takeover offer by billionaire Ed Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management because it “fundamentally and materially undervalues” the world’s largest music company.
Prosek Partners brings on Danielle O’Brien as a managing director in its investor relations practice, based in the firm’s New York office.
Houston’s Dancie Perugini Ware PR represents Fertitta Entertainment as it takes Caesars Entertainment private in a $17.6B cash deal. 
