Interpublic's stock sinks toward 1-year low after profit miss, as tech and telecom activity remain weak

Shares of Interpublic Group of Companies Inc. (IPG) sank 5.4% toward a one-year low in premarket trading Friday, after the marketing services company missed third-quarter profit expectations, citing continued weakness among technology and telecommunications customers. Net income fell to $243.7 million, or 63 cents a share, from $251.8 million, or 64 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding nonrecurring items, adjusted earnings per share of 70 cents missed the FactSet consensus of 73 cents. Revenue grew 1.5% to $2.68 billion to top the FactSet consensus of $2.39 billion, as billable expenses jumped 8.2% to $369.5 million and revenue before billable expenses edged up 0.6% to $2.31 billion. "Factors that we have identified since the early part of the year continued to weigh on our growth in the quarter," said Chief Executive Philippe Krakowsky. "These include the decreases in client activity in the tech and telecom client sector that have been evident across our industry, and the performance of certain of our digital specialists." The stock has tumbled 24.7% over the past three months through Thursday while the S&P 500 has lost 5.7%.

-Tomi Kilgore

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10-20-23 0714ET

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