Continued progress on strategy; full-year guidance unchanged
NEW YORK & LONDON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–WPP (NYSE: WPP) held its Annual General Meeting at noon on 12 June 2019
at the Purcell Room in London’s Southbank Centre.
Roberto Quarta, Chairman of WPP, said:
“It has been a year of significant change for WPP. Throughout, the Board
and the executive team have worked together closely to position the
company for future success.
“Under Mark’s leadership, the team has moved rapidly and decisively to
implement the new strategy. We have been pleased by how well the plan
has been received among investors, clients and partners. Critically,
there is also strong backing for the company’s direction and leadership
among our own people.
“The team has listened carefully to all groups with a stake in WPP’s
future. The company has established its first employee forum in the UK,
and similar forums will be established in other markets. We are
fortunate to have so many talented people around the world and we are
committed to ensuring their voice is heard as we take WPP forward.”
Mark Read, Chief Executive Officer of WPP, said:
“In December we set out our vision for the future of WPP, and we
continue to make progress in delivering our plan to return the company
to sustainable growth over the next three years. Our financial guidance
for the full year is unchanged.
“We continue our programme of new investment in creativity, technology
and our people, and remain absolutely focused on the needs of our
clients and the interests of all our shareholders.
“Our new business performance this year has been solid, with GroupM in
particular maintaining its successful record in pitches. Notable wins
for WPP and our agencies include adidas, Distell, Duracell, GSK,
KangShiFu Drinks, L’Oréal, Signet and VodafoneZiggo.
“We believe in providing our people with outstanding, creative
environments that enable them to do their best work, and we have
accelerated the roll-out of WPP campuses around the world, with
Amsterdam, Bucharest, Helsinki, Johannesburg, Madrid, Milan and Mumbai
opening this year.
“The transformation of our culture is just as important as the
transformation of our business, and to help drive that change we have
moved WPP’s own headquarters to campus locations in both London and New
York – bringing us closer to our agencies and reflecting the
collaborative spirit we want to foster throughout the company.”
Kantar update
The previously announced process for the sale of a majority stake in
Kantar is progressing in line with our expectations.
Outlook
Financial guidance
Our 2019 targets remain as:
-
Like-for-like revenue less pass-through costs down 1.5% to 2.0%, with
stronger headwinds in the first half, due to client assignment losses
in the latter part of 2018 -
Headline operating margin to revenue less pass-through costs down
around 1.0 margin point on a constant currency basis (excluding the
impact of IFRS 16: Leases)
Medium-term financial targets
As outlined at the Investor Day in December 2018, our medium-term
financial targets, to be achieved by the end of 2021, are:
-
Organic growth (defined as like-for-like revenue less pass-through
costs growth) in line with peers -
Headline operating margin (excluding the impact of IFRS 16: Leases)
of at least 15% - Free cash flow conversion of 80%-90%
This announcement has been filed at the Company Announcements Office of
the London Stock Exchange and is being distributed to all owners of
Ordinary shares and American Depository Receipts. Copies are available
to the public at the Company’s registered office.
The following cautionary statement is included for safe harbour purposes
in connection with the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995
introduced in the United States of America. This announcement may
contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the US federal
securities laws. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties
that could cause actual results to differ materially including
adjustments arising from the annual audit by management and the
Company’s independent auditors. For further information on factors which
could impact the Company and the statements contained herein, please
refer to public filings by the Company with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. The statements in this announcement should be considered in
light of these risks and uncertainties.
Contacts
Mark Read
Andrew Scott
Paul Richardson
Peregrine Riviere
Lisa
Hau
Chris Wade
+44 20 7282 4600
Fran Butera
Kevin McCormack
+1 212 632 2235
Juliana Yeh
+852 2280 3790
Richard Oldworth
Buchanan Communications
+44 20 7466 5000
+44
7710 130 634
