Interpublic Group reported net organic revenue growth of 1.7% in the second quarter. Net organic revenue for the period was flat at $2.33 billion. Organic revenue growth excludes M&A and currency impact.  

The tepid growth was not unexpected, and IPG CEO Philippe Krakowsky noted that it was an improvement versus the same period year ago.  

By comparison, Omnicom and Publicis Groupe both reported Q2 results last week with organic growth that exceeded 5%.  

“Consistent with our longer-term performance, IPG Mediabrands and IPG Health led the way in the quarter,” said Krakowsky. “We also saw notable contributions to growth from Deutsch LA, Golin and Acxiom.”   

“The most successful businesses in our portfolio continue to demonstrate specialized, high-value services that identify and reach audiences with greater precision and accountability,” he added. “Much of this work is powered by our industry-leading audience data and a technology stack that unifies the marketing funnel. This enables marketers to assess and understand the value of their investments, whether on technology platforms, in earned and paid media, or in other key sales and retail channels. We continue to focus on these growth areas of the business, as well as on integrating generative AI tools and technologies into our content and creative offerings.” 

Digital agency performance and the soft tech and telecom sector continued to weigh on performance by a combined 1.7%, Krakowsky noted an earnings call with analysts Tuesday morning.

The company expects to achieve 1% organic growth for the full year. Earlier, it had stated a 1% to 2% growth range, but noted at the time the loss of a significant client that could make reaching the higher end of that range difficult.