Omnicom beats quarterly results estimates on strong growth in ad segment

(Reuters) – Omnicom Group (NYSE:) beat Wall Street estimates for third-quarter profit and revenue on Tuesday, driven by strong growth in its advertising and media segment.

Businesses have resumed spending on newer projects after an extended halt in brand advertising owing to economic uncertainty and high inflation.

The advertising and marketing conglomerate’s revenue was also boosted as brands substantially increased their spending on ads in the run-up to the U.S. presidential election.

Omnicom’s revenue stood at $3.88 billion in the quarter ended September 30, compared with analysts’ average estimate of $3.80 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Ahead of the results, analysts from J.P. Morgan said new business wins will also benefit Omnicom.

The company’s advertising and media segment, its largest by revenue, posted a topline growth of 9.4% to $2.08 billion in the third quarter, compared with the same period a year ago.

The New York-based company, which competes with the Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE:) and UK’s WPP (LON:), is one of the world’s biggest integrated advertising and communications firms.

IPG-owned media research firm Magna Global said brands are allocating their budgets to advertise in retail media and Olympic sponsorship, while tech companies are boosting their investment to advertise AI brands such as Gemini and Copilot.

The agency predicts the U.S. media owners’ advertising revenues will grow by 11.4% in 2024.

On an adjusted basis, the company earned $2.03 per share during the third quarter, compared with expectations of $2.02.