MUMBAI: The world’s second largest advertising company Omnicom Group Inc reported a meagre two per cent rise in net income for the first quarter of 2015 despite seeing a decline in revenue. The company’s net income rose from $205.5 million (or 77 cents per share) to $209.1 million (or 82 cents per share).
Omnicom's worldwide revenue in the first quarter of 2015 decreased one per cent to $3,469.2 million from $3,502.2 million in the first quarter of 2014.
Domestic revenue for the first quarter of 2015 increased 4.6 per cent to $1,958.2 million compared to $1,871.8 million in the first quarter of 2014. International revenue decreased 7.3 per cent to $1,511.0 million compared to $1,630.4 million in the first quarter of 2014.
For the quarter ended 31 March, 2015, organic growth increased revenue 5.1 per cent, acquisitions, net of dispositions increased revenue 0.4 per cent, while the impact of foreign exchange rates decreased revenue 6.4 per cent when compared to the first quarter of 2014.
Across regional markets, organic revenue in the first quarter of 2015 increased 4.8 per cent in North America, 9.3 per cent in the United Kingdom, 2.7 per cent in the Euro Markets and Other Europe, 6.7 per cent in Asia Pacific, 3.4 per cent in Latin America and 10.6 per cent in Africa/Middle East, when compared to the same quarter of 2014.
The change in organic revenue in the first quarter of 2015 as compared to the first quarter of 2014 in our four fundamental disciplines was as follows: advertising increased 7.7 per cent, CRM increased 2.6 per cent, public relations increased 3.1 per cent and specialty communications increased 2.6 per cent.
For the first quarter of 2015, Omnicom's earnings before interest, taxes and amortization of intangibles (EBITA), a non-GAAP financial measure, decreased $2.1 million, or 0.5 per cent, to $405 million from $407.1 million in the first quarter of 2014. The company’s EBITA margin increased to 11.7 per cent for the first quarter of 2015 versus 11.6 per cent in the first quarter of 2014.
Operating income in the first quarter of 2015 decreased $5 million, or 1.3 per cent, to $377.7 million from $382.7 million in the first quarter of 2014. Operating margin in the first quarter of 2015 of 10.9 per cent was unchanged when compared to the first quarter of 2014.
