Steady Organic Growth in Q1 for Ipsos

Ipsos has announced organic, constant currency revenue growth of 2 percent for the first quarter of 2018. Reported revenue of EUR 367m was down 5.9% due to the strength of the Euro versus the dollar, yen and other currencies.

While the organic growth was weaker than in the second half of 2017 (more than 4%), it was an improvement on H1 2017 (1%), and Ipsos says the remainder of this year might see a similar rise, given a lag in the conversion of sales into revenue. THis is the result of winning more large-scale contracts for which work is spread over one or more years.

The statement expressed caution about figures for units within the group, by region and business line, noting that Q1 revenue is always the smallest - about 20 percent of the annual total - and said indications were 'unreliable'. However it notes that Asia Pacific performance 'is and will probably remain' ahead of the rest of the world, where the gap between the Americas and EMEA is narrowing. The group's seventeen 'new services', rolled out since 2015, are growing faster in emerging markets (27.5%) than developed (10%), but the difference in organic growth here is only 3% (emerging) vs 1% (developed). New services accounted for 13.9% of total revenue compared with 12% in the first quarter of 2017.

At present, Ipsos says that while satisfactory these figures are 'in themselves not sufficient to achieve its ambition to return to a rate of growth closer to the top of the 2-5% range announced in 2015.

Opinion & Social Research shone once again, adding 6% organically, while media and advertising research also performed above average.



Ipsos' move to new accounting standards (IFRS 15 instead of IAS 18 Revenue and IAS 11 Construction contracts from 1st January 2018) makes for more 'reliable' measures, the firm said, but has had little effect on revenues this time round, adding only 0.4% to the total.

Profitability is in line with the objectives announced for the full year.

Ipsos says it is looking to resume a programme of targeted acquisitions, in areas where 'pertinent skills, technologies and know-how' can be added faster that way than organically. It will also make two further announcements about the progress of its 'Total Understanding' project, in late July and at its investors' day in Paris on 7th November. The group says it expects growth for this year to be 'similar to 2016/2017, at between 2% and 3%', and adds: 'More substantial growth should come in the following year'.

Web site: www.ipsos.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.

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