Publicis has reported 4.5% net revenue growth for Q1 and confirmed a previous forecast of growth between 4% and 5% for 2026.
The network said Q1 was a “rock solid floor”, with €3.46 billion (US$4.08 billion) of net revenue, compared with €3.54 billion (US$4.17 billion) in Q1 2025. Even though the figure in Q1 2025 was higher than that in Q1 2026, organic net revenue has increased by 4.5%. The company said: "Exchange rates had a negative impact of €268 million (US$316 million). Acquisitions, net of disposals, accounted for a positive impact of €46 million in (US$54.2 million)."
Arthur Sadoun, chairman and chief executive of Publicis Groupe, said that the network had had a “very strong start to the year” despite a “challenging macro environment”.
Sadoun noted that the network’s key regions performed well, with the US growing by 4.7%, Europe growing by 4% and APAC by 6%.
In the US, this was driven by Publicis’ media and creative offering, while in Europe it was driven by its media proposition. In the UK, organic growth was up by 6.2%.
The report touched on the conflict in the Middle East, namely the war in Iran, and noted that net revenue was down by 5.1% organically in that region, which also includes Africa.
As for the effects of the war so far, the report noted that it had “reduced client visibility and weighed on large and capex-heavy transformation projects”. This had affected its technology practice, Publicis Sapient, which represented 14% of total net revenue and was slightly down on a net revenue organic growth basis in Q1.
Despite this slight downturn, Sadoun gave three reasons for the network’s confidence in 2026.
The reasons were: the network’s “transformation” was “well behind” it, allowing Publicis to focus on clients’ growth; the network was “increasing [its] addressable in a shrinking competitive landscape, investing in the channels and capabilities that deliver the most value for our clients”; and “AI continues to be a tailwind for Publicis, driving our growth, widening the gap with competition, and enabling to expand our partnerships”.
He went on to mention the network’s recent win with Microsoft as an example of one of these partnerships.
Sadoun also used the occasion to address the performance of other advertising networks, primarily Omnicom and WPP, in a video to staff.
Discussing WPP and Omnicom's investor days, he said: "They want to squeeze to please Wall Street. They are squeezing their number of people with massive layoffs. They are squeezing their number of shares with huge buybacks. And they are squeezing some of their assets by simply putting them up for sale."
In February 2026, Omnicom announced further job cuts after it doubled its target for annual cost synergies to $1.5 billion, while WPP plans to make £500 million in annualised cost savings in 2026.
Sadoun made a point to differentiate Publicis from his rivals' strategy, saying: "At Publicis, our strategy is the polar opposite of that."
He emphasised that staff were the network's "greatest asset" and not a "debt" and that the company would prioritise "acquiring breakthrough capabilities" over "share buybacks".
Most recently, the network acquired content measurement company Adge.AI and sports and culture agency 160over90.
The network's Q1 results precede those of the other four major networks, which are set to be released in the forthcoming weeks. Most recently, UK-based rival WPP reported a decline of 5.4% globally in 2025, while the newly-merged Omnicom reported a 10.1% rise in gross revenue (it does not report revenue less-pass through costs) across the year.
Havas reported 3.1% in organic net revenue growth and Dentsu recorded a 0.5% increase in 2025.
Source: Campaign UK
