On April 26,
Interpublic Group of Companies Inc.
(
IPG
) reported financial results for the first quarter of 2012. For the
quarter, the company reported a loss of 10 cents per basic and
diluted share in line with the loss recorded in the first quarter
of 2011 and with that of the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Revenue:
Revenue in the first quarter inched up 2.2% year over year to
$1,506.8 million, with 1.7% growth in the U.S. and 2.9%
internationally. Revenue in the reported quarter marginally
surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,492 million.
Organic revenue in the quarter increased 2.8% compared to the
prior-year period based on the negative effect of foreign currency
translation on one hand and a positive net acquisition impact on
the other.
Margin:
Operating loss was $39.4 million compared with $45.3 million in the
year-ago period. Operating expenses in the quarter inched down 1.7%
to $1,546.2 million. This included decrease of 2.3% in salaries and
related expenses and a decline of 0.5% in office and general
expenses. Operating margin in the quarter was (2.6)% compared with
(3.1)% in the year-ago quarter.
Balance Sheet:
Exiting the first quarter, the company's cash and cash equivalents
and marketable securities amounted to $1.59 billion compared with
$2.32 billion in the previous quarter. Total debt was recorded at
$1.62 billion compared with $1.77 billion in the preceding
quarter.
Dividend/Senior Notes:
During the first quarter of 2012, the company paid a dividend of
$0.06 per share, for a total consideration of $26.2 million.
Moreover, the company repurchased 4.9 million shares of its common
stock for $52.5 million. The average price was $10.61 per
share.
In addition, the company retired $400 million of its 4.25%
Convertible Senior Notes due 2023. This eliminated 33 million
shares from eligible dilutive share count and thereafter issued
$250 million in aggregate principal amount of its 4.00% Senior
Notes due 2022.
IPG's diversified global presence--riding on new business
investment-provides an edge above its peers, such as
Omnicom Group Inc.
(
OMC
),
Publicis Groupe SA
(
PUBGY
) and
WPP plc
(
WPPGY
).
INTERPUBLIC GRP (
IPG
): Free Stock Analysis Report
OMNICOM GRP (
OMC
): Free Stock Analysis Report
PUBLICIS GP-ADR (
PUBGY
): Free Stock Analysis Report
WPP PLC (
WPPGY
): Free Stock Analysis Report
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