Creative agency WPP has seen a slight fall in its headline operating profit in its 2024 preliminary results.
The figures, published today (27 February), highlighted the agency’s operating profit dropped £43 million, from £1.75 billion in 2023 to a reported £1.707 billion.
It also recorded a loss in total revenue going from £14.8 billion in 2023 to £14.7 billion.
The agency’s CEO Mark Read said the fall in its top line was due to “quarter-four [being] impacted by weaker client discretionary spend”.
The agency also reported Q4 like-for-like pass-through costs of -2.3%.
It highlighted that its growth in western continental Europe (+1.4%) was offset by its decline in the rest of the world, with a reported decline in North America of -1.4% and the UK of -5.1%.
It also reported that it saw a major fall in the Chinese market (-21.2%).
WPP’s financial report showed its adjusted operating cash flow had increased to £1.46 billion in 2024 from £1.28 billion in 2023. Its adjusted free cash flow rose to £738 million from £637 million, due to strong working capital management.
The agency reported its adjusted net debt on 31 December 2024 was down £0.8 billion year-on-year to £1.7 billion.
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Read said: “We did see growth from our top 25 clients of 2.0% and an improving new business performance in the second half of the year with wins from Amazon, J&J, Kimberly-Clark and Unilever reflecting the strength of our integrated offer.”
The report also highlighted that WPP had implemented a simpler client-facing structure in 2024, offering a more integrated service across creative, commerce, media and production.
The agency increased investment in WPP Open, an AI model, to £300 million from £250 million the previous year.
Looking ahead to 2025, the company highlighted that it aims to accelerate business growth through “the power of creative transformation”.
It has also said it wants to build “world-class, market-leading brands” by improving the competitiveness of its media offering, focusing on the US.
WPP has showcased that one of its main goals for 2025 is to increase its operational efficiency and enhance its investment allocation.
Read said: “The actions we are taking across WPP will strengthen our existing client relationships and drive our new business results. We expect some improvement in the performance of our integrated creative agencies in the year ahead. At the same time, we have comprehensive efforts underway to improve our competitive positioning through new leadership at GroupM, with further investment in AI, data and proprietary media.”
“Though we remain cautious given the overall macro environment, we are confident in our medium-term targets and believe our focus on innovation, a simpler client-facing offer and operational excellence will support our growth and deliver greater value for our shareholders,” he added.
