Interpublic Group of Companies Inc (IPG) 2024 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, and welcome to the Interpublic Group fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 conference call. (Operator Instructions) This conference is being recorded. If you have any objections, you may disconnect at this time.

早安，歡迎參加 Interpublic Group 2024 年第四季和全年電話會議。（操作員指示）本次會議正在錄音。如果您有任何異議，此時您可以斷開連接。

I would now like to introduce Mr. Jerry Leshne, Senior Vice President of Investor Relations. Sir, you may begin.

現在我想介紹投資者關係高級副總裁傑瑞萊什內先生。先生，您可以開始啦。

Good morning. Thank you for joining us. This morning, we are joined by our CEO, Philippe Krakowsky; and by Ellen Johnson, our CFO. We have posted our earnings release and our slide presentation on our website, interpublic.com. We will begin with prepared remarks to be followed by Q&A. We plan to conclude before market open at 9:30 Eastern Time.

早安.感謝您加入我們。今天上午，我們的執行長 Philippe Krakowsky 與我們一起出席；以及我們的財務長 Ellen Johnson。我們已經在我們的網站 interpublic.com 上發布了我們的收益報告和幻燈片演示。我們將以準備好的發言開始，然後進行問答。我們計劃在美國東部時間 9:30 開市前結束交易。

During this call, we will refer to forward-looking statements about our company. These are subject to the uncertainties and the cautionary statement that are included in our earnings release and the slide presentation. These are further detailed in our 10-K and other filings with the SEC. We will also refer to certain non-GAAP measures. We believe that these measures provide useful supplemental data that, while not a substitute for GAAP measures, allow for greater transparency in the review of our financial and operational performance.

在本次電話會議中，我們將參考有關本公司的前瞻性陳述。這些都受到我們的收益報告和幻燈片演示中包含的不確定性和警告聲明的影響。我們向美國證券交易委員會 (SEC) 提交的 10-K 和其他文件中對此進行了進一步詳細說明。我們也將參考某些非公認會計準則指標。我們相信，這些指標提供了有用的補充數據，雖然不能取代 GAAP 指標，但可以提高我們財務和營運績效審查的透明度。

At this point, it is my pleasure to turn things over to Philippe Krakowsky.

現在，我很高興將事情交給菲利普‧克拉科夫斯基 (Philippe Krakowsky)。

Thank you, Jerry, and thank you for joining us this morning. As usual, I'll start with a high-level view of our results in the quarter and for the full year, as well as our operating outlook for the year ahead. Ellen will then add additional detail, and I'll conclude with thoughts on the compelling strategic benefits of our proposed acquisition by Omnicom.

謝謝你，傑瑞，謝謝你今天早上加入我們。像往常一樣，我首先將概括介紹我們本季和全年的業績以及未來一年的營運前景。然後，艾倫 (Ellen) 將補充更多細節，最後我將談論我們被宏盟集團 (Omnicom) 收購的引人注目的戰略優勢。

Turning to performance and beginning with revenue. Our organic revenue decrease in Q4 was 1.8%, bringing us to full-year organic growth of 20 basis points. Our revenue change in the fourth quarter was largely due to the impact of the account activity over the previous 12-month period, which we had discussed with you on prior calls.

轉向績效並從收入開始。我們第四季的有機收入下降了 1.8%，全年有機收入成長了 20 個基點。我們第四季度的收入變化主要是由於前 12 個月帳戶活動的影響，我們在先前的電話會議中已經與您討論過這個問題。

Those headwinds intensified during the quarter, which was expected, but at a somewhat greater rate than we'd anticipated. As a result, the full year fell shy of our forecast. While we saw the impact of those headwinds broadly across a number of disciplines and geographic regions, that was partially offset by notably strong growth in the food and beverage sector, as well as the return to solid growth in technology and telecom. As discussed on our last two calls, the underlying tone of business in the quarter did pick up from earlier in the year.

這些不利因素在本季度有所加劇，這是預料之中的，但速度比我們預期的要快一些。因此，全年業績低於我們的預測。雖然我們看到這些不利因素對多個學科和地區產生了廣泛影響，但食品和飲料行業的強勁增長以及科技和電信行業的穩健增長在一定程度上抵消了這些不利因素的影響。正如我們上兩次電話會議中所討論的那樣，本季度的業務基本面確實較今年早些時候有所回暖。

It's also worth noting that we had several headline wins to close the year, including Amgen, Little Caesars, and Volvo on the media front, as well as Pizza Hut and the Kimberly-Clark creative consolidation, which took place in mid-January. This represents solid new business momentum, but those wins are too recent to have benefited our fourth quarter and won't fully be online until a bit later in the year.

另外值得注意的是，我們在年底取得了幾項重大勝利，包括媒體方面的安進、小凱撒和沃爾沃，以及 1 月中旬進行的必勝客和金佰利創意合併。這代表著新業務勢頭強勁，但這些勝利來得太晚，尚未使我們在第四季度受益，而且要到今年晚些時候才會完全發揮作用。

Turning to operating expenses and profitability in the quarter, our adjusted EBITDA margin was 24.3%. And with that performance, we delivered against the full-year margin target of 16.6% that we'd set at the beginning of 2024. That sustained level of profitability reflects strong operating discipline by our teams, notwithstanding a challenging year, while continuing our significant investment in talent and our technology and platform capabilities.

談到本季的營業費用和獲利能力，我們的調整後 EBITDA 利潤率為 24.3%。憑藉這樣的業績，我們實現了 2024 年初設定的 16.6% 的全年利潤率目標。儘管經歷了充滿挑戰的一年，持續的獲利水準仍反映了我們團隊強大的營運紀律，同時我們繼續對人才、技術和平台能力進行大量投資。

Fourth-quarter diluted earnings per share was $0.92 as reported and was $1.11 as adjusted for acquired intangibles amortization, some initial deal expenses related to our planned combination with Omnicom, and the nonoperating impact of nonstrategic businesses sold or held for sale. Full-year diluted earnings per share was $1.83 as reported and $2.77 as adjusted. That compares to $2.99 in 2023. As a reminder, our EPS in full year '23 included the benefit of a $0.17 per share related to the resolution of routine federal income tax audits of previous years.

第四季每股攤薄收益為 0.92 美元，經調整後每股攤薄收益為 1.11 美元，這些調整包括收購無形資產攤銷、與宏盟集團計劃合併相關的一些初始交易費用以及出售或持有待售的非戰略性業務的非經營性影響。全年每股攤薄收益為 1.83 美元（報告），調整後為 2.77 美元。相比之下，2023 年的價格為 2.99 美元。提醒一下，我們 23 年全年的每股盈餘包括與解決前幾年例行聯邦所得稅審計相關的每股 0.17 美元的收益。

Over the course of the year, total capital returned to shareholders, between dividends and share repurchase, was $727 million. We suspended repurchases in the fourth quarter due to the pendency of the merger. And given regulatory limitations, we expect to be back in the market after our shareholder meeting.

在這一年中，返還給股東的總資本（包括股利和股票回購）為 7.27 億美元。由於合併尚未完成，我們在第四季度暫停了回購。考慮到監管限制，我們預計股東大會後將重返市場。

It's also worth noting that while historically, we've raised our dividend per share at this time of year, as we work towards the acquisition by Omnicom, both parties contractually agreed to no increases through the premerger period. As you heard last week in John's remarks, the expectation is that the free cash flow of the combined companies will be very substantial, and as such, it expects to increase Omnicom's historical capital allocation for dividends and share repurchases, while also being able to invest meaningfully into the combined business to further enhance its strength in key areas, such as technology and talent.

另外值得注意的是，雖然從歷史上看，我們每年的這個時候都會提高每股股息，但由於我們正致力於被宏盟集團收購，雙方在合約中一致同意在合併前的期間內不會增加股息。正如您在上週約翰的演講中聽到的那樣，預計合併後公司的自由現金流將非常可觀，因此，它預計將增加宏盟集團用於股息和股票回購的歷史資本配置，同時也能夠對合併後的業務進行有意義的投資，以進一步增強其在技術和人才等關鍵領域的實力。

As we look ahead to 2025, of course, one very significant focus is our commitment to bringing the merger to full effectiveness. A number of our competitors are clearly concerned enough about the combination that they've spent a lot of airtime talking about our being distracted. But our frontline talent is fully focused on clients, which is obviously as it should be, and we have a small and clearly defined group here at corporate that will be working on the day-to-day activities required for a successful integration.

當然，展望 2025 年，一個非常重要的焦點是我們致力於使合併全面生效。我們的許多競爭對手顯然對這種組合十分擔憂，他們花了大量時間來談論我們的分心。但我們的第一線人才完全專注於客戶，這顯然是理所當然的，而且我們在公司有一個規模較小、職責明確的團隊，負責成功整合所需的日常活動。

In the meantime, IPG will, of course, continue to operate independently. So it's appropriate that we continue to share our stand-alone outlook with you as part of these calls. Entering the new year, we've seen that clients remain focused on the need to drive growth. And that means investing in the ongoing evolution of their businesses, especially around solutions at the intersection of media, creativity, technology, and data. Yet global macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty, which we had seen abate in the latter part of 2024, remains. And that is showing up in a somewhat more cautious and deliberative approach to budgeting on clients in certain industry sectors.

同時，IPG 當然將繼續獨立營運。因此，我們在這些通話中繼續與您分享我們的獨立觀點是恰當的。進入新的一年，我們看到客戶仍然專注於推動成長的需求。這意味著要投資於其業務的持續發展，特別是圍繞媒體、創造力、技術和數據交叉領域的解決方案。然而，我們在 2024 年下半年看到全球宏觀經濟和地緣政治不確定性減弱，但這種不確定性仍然存在。這表現為在某些行業領域針對客戶制定預算時採取了更加謹慎和深思熟慮的方式。

During this year, we'll also continue to navigate the weight of trailing wins and losses on our top line. As we've discussed previously, we are on the wrong side of the outcome in defending a number of very significant media accounts. It's worth reminding everyone that the decisive factor on those largest decisions was [principal media] and specifically the commercial terms enabled by principal media at scale. In one other important account shift in the healthcare vertical, where our capabilities have led to market for many years, a competitor was able to leverage its much greater size to win a significant portion of a large creative account that we've been awarded not long prior.

今年，我們也將持續應對營收的持續成長和虧損帶來的壓力。正如我們之前所討論過的，在為一些非常重要的媒體帳戶辯護時，我們站在了錯誤的一邊。值得提醒大家的是，這些重大決策的決定性因素是[主媒體]，特別是主媒體大規模實現的商業條款。在醫療保健垂直領域的另一個重要客戶轉變中，我們的能力多年來一直引領市場，競爭對手能夠利用其更強大的規模贏得我們不久前贏得的一個大型創意客戶的很大一部分。

Looking at just the three largest of those decisions, together, they will weigh on our growth for this year by 4.5 to 5 percentage points. Factoring in that headwind and with an offset of otherwise sound underlying performance, we are, therefore, targeting an organic decrease for 2025 of 1% to 2%. We estimate that quarterly revenue phasing will be significantly more challenged in the first half of the year with a net impact of wins and losses easing in the year's second half. It's important to highlight that our proposed combination with Omnicom will position us with greatly strengthened solutions for more competitive and better client outcomes.

僅從其中最大的三個決定來看，它們加起來將對我們今年的成長造成 4.5 到 5 個百分點的影響。考慮到這一不利因素，並考慮到其他方面穩健的基本業績，我們的目標是 2025 年有機降幅達到 1% 至 2%。我們預計，今年上半年季度營收分階段將面臨更大挑戰，而下半年獲利和虧損的淨影響將會減弱。值得強調的是，我們與宏盟集團的合併將使我們獲得更強大的解決方案，從而提高競爭力並為客戶帶來更好的成果。

Turning to our outlook on expenses and margin for the year, as most of you know, we've consistently challenged ourselves with respect to our opportunities to evolve the architecture of our company, both for client service as well as operating efficiency. You've heard me speak before that the structural changes that we need to make to improve our growth profile, namely investing in higher growth capabilities, increasing the integration of our offerings and constantly simplifying what it means to work with us. This also applies to our ways of working and our organizational structure.

談到我們對今年費用和利潤的展望，正如你們大多數人所知，我們一直在挑戰自己，尋找機會來改善公司架構，無論是在客戶服務方面還是在營運效率方面。大家之前已經聽我說過，我們需要進行結構性變革來改善我們的成長狀況，即投資於更高的成長能力，提高我們產品的整合度，並不斷簡化與我們合作的意義。這也適用於我們的工作方式和組織結構。

With an eye on the rapid evolution of our industry and its impact on our business, over the course of the back half of last year, we undertook a wide-ranging strategic analysis that included multiple avenues to rethinking our operating structure. This strategic review has been focused on maximizing opportunities as an independent IPG, but these efforts will also clearly benefit us when it comes to the combination of our company into Omnicom.

著眼於我們行業的快速發展及其對我們業務的影響，去年下半年，我們進行了廣泛的策略分析，其中包括重新思考我們營運結構的多種途徑。這次策略評估的重點是最大限度地利用作為獨立 IPG 的機會，但當我們公司與宏盟集團合併時，這些努力顯然也會使我們受益。

Our outlook for 2025, therefore, includes a programming of restructuring over the course of the year designed to transform our business, enhance our offerings, and drive significant structural expense savings. This is a blueprint for accelerating change that includes speeding our progress on strategic centralization of many corporate functions, greater offshoring and nearshoring in both corporate services and certain areas of client service delivery, with the latter centers of excellence focused on platform benefits in key areas such as production and analytics. We will also continue to improve efficiency in the operational structure at a number of our agencies as well as further improve real estate efficiencies.

因此，我們對 2025 年的展望包括全年進行重組計劃，旨在轉變我們的業務、增強我們的產品並大幅節省結構性成本。這是加速變革的藍圖，包括加快許多公司職能的策略集中化進程，在公司服務和某些客戶服務交付領域加大離岸外包和近岸外包，後者的卓越中心重點關註生產和分析等關鍵領域的平台優勢。我們也將繼續提高一些代理商的營運結構效率，並進一步提高房地產效率。

Specifically, we expect that our program will generate in-year savings of approximately $250 million in 2025. The associated charge should be of an equivalent amount with a significant portion being noncash. We will recognize most of those expenses in the first and second quarters, and we'll call those out for you in our P&L. And we plan to provide additional details on this plan with our first quarter report in April.

具體來說，我們預計我們的計劃將在 2025 年產生約 2.5 億美元的年度節省。相關費用應為等值金額，且很大一部分是非現金的。我們將在第一季和第二季確認大部分費用，並在損益表中為您列出。我們計劃在四月份的第一季報告中提供有關該計劃的更多詳細資訊。

To be clear, though, we believe these actions have very limited overlap with a $750 million of cost synergies anticipated as part of our proposed combination with Omnicom. As you heard in some detail from John last week, those savings are enabled largely by the combination of our two companies and the areas of focus he called out are not those that I just identified. Additionally, as John mentioned on his call, the $750 million of synergies excludes revenue synergies, synergies from automation, and incremental onshoring and offshoring.

但需要明確的是，我們認為這些行動與我們與 Omnicom 合併後預期的 7.5 億美元成本綜效重疊非常有限。正如您上週從約翰那裡詳細聽到的那樣，這些節省主要得益於我們兩家公司的合併，而他提到的重點領域並不是我剛才提到的那些。此外，正如約翰在電話會議中提到的，7.5 億美元的協同效應不包括收入協同效應、自動化協同效應以及增量在岸和離岸外包。

The restructuring is required given the opportunities for greater efficiency within our company and will allow it to become a part of the new Omnicom in the strongest possible position. In terms of 2025, with these strategic actions on costs, along with our usual strong operating discipline, we're targeting adjusted EBITA margin of 16.6% under our expected organic revenue decrease of 1% to 2%.

鑑於我們公司內部提高效率的機會，重組是必要的，並將使公司能夠以最強大的地位成為新宏盟集團的一部分。就 2025 年而言，透過這些成本策略行動，加上我們一貫嚴格的營運紀律，我們的目標是在預計有機收入下降 1% 至 2% 的情況下，將調整後的 EBITA 利潤率實現 16.6%。

As we look ahead, we remain confident in the many fundamental areas of strength within our company and the enormous potential of our planned combination with Omnicom. I'll come back with thoughts on the acquisition, but at this point, I'd like to turn things over to Ellen for a more in-depth view of our results.

展望未來，我們對於公司眾多基本優勢以及與宏盟集團合併後的巨大潛力依然充滿信心。我會回來談談對這項收購的想法，但現在，我想把事情交給艾倫，以便更深入了解我們的結果。

Thank you. I hope that everyone is well. As a reminder, my remarks will track to the presentation slides that accompany our webcast. Beginning on slide 2 of the presentation, our organic decrease of net revenue in the quarter was 1.8%. That brings our organic revenue growth for the year to 20 basis points.

謝謝。我希望大家一切安好。提醒一下，我的發言將會圍繞著我們網路廣播中的簡報投影片進行。從簡報的第 2 張投影片開始，我們本季淨收入的自然下降率為 1.8%。這使我們今年的有機收入成長達到 20 個基點。

Adjusted EBITA in the quarter was $591.2 million, and margin on net revenue was 24.3%. Adjustments exclude the amortization of acquired intangibles and a $9.3 million of deal expenses and SG&A related to our acquisition by Omnicom. For the full year, our adjusted margin was 16.6%.

本季調整後 EBITA 為 5.912 億美元，淨收入利潤率為 24.3%。調整不包括收購無形資產的攤銷和與我們被 Omnicom 收購相關的 930 萬美元的交易費用以及銷售、一般和行政費用。全年而言，我們的調整後利潤率為 16.6%。

Our diluted earnings per share in the quarter was $0.92 as reported and $1.11 as adjusted. Below the line, we have adjusted for nonoperating losses from both the disposition of nonstrategic businesses and assets held for sale.

本季我們的每股攤薄收益為 0.92 美元（報告），調整後每股攤薄收益為 1.11 美元。在線下，我們已經調整了非策略性業務和持有待售資產處置產生的非營業損失。

Our adjusted diluted EPS was $2.77 for the full year. We concluded the year in a strong financial position with $2.2 billion of cash on the balance sheet and with only 1.7 times gross financial debt to EBITA as defined in our credit facility.

我們全年調整後的攤薄每股收益為 2.77 美元。本財年結束時，我們的財務狀況十分強勁，資產負債表上有 22 億美元現金，而根據我們的信貸安排，總財務債務與 EBITA 之比僅為 1.7 倍。

Our share repurchases during the year totaled 7.3 million shares, which returned $230 million to our shareholders in 2024. As Philippe noted earlier, we suspended our activity in the fourth quarter due to the planned acquisition by Omnicom.

我們全年回購了 730 萬股股票，並在 2024 年為股東帶來了 2.3 億美元的回報。正如 Philippe 之前提到的，由於宏盟集團的收購計劃，我們在第四季度暫停了業務活動。

Turning to slide 3, you'll see our P&L for the quarter. I'll cover revenue and operating expenses in detail in the slides that follow.

翻到投影片 3，您將看到本季的損益表。我將在後面的幻燈片中詳細介紹收入和營運費用。

Turning to fourth-quarter and full-year revenue on slide 4. Our net revenue in the quarter was $2.43 billion, a decrease of 5.9% from a year ago. Compared to Q4 '23, the impact of the change in exchange rates was negative 50 basis points. The impact of net dispositions and assets held for sale was negative 3.6%. Our organic net revenue decrease was 1.8%, which brings us to organic growth of 20 basis points for the full year.

第四張投影片介紹第四季和全年收入。本季我們的淨收入為 24.3 億美元，較去年同期下降 5.9%。與23年第四季相比，匯率變動的影響為負50個基點。淨處分及持有待售資產的影響為負 3.6%。我們的有機淨收入下降了 1.8%，這使我們全年的有機成長率達到 20 個基點。

Further down the slide, we break out segment net revenue performance. Our Media, Data, and Engagement Solutions segment decreased 60 basis points organically. Very strong growth at Acxiom was offset by continued decreases in MRM. Mediabrands decreased slightly in the quarter, less than 1% due to the significant impact of trailing account losses. Organic growth for the full year of this segment was 20 basis points.

在接下來的投影片中，我們詳細列出了分部淨收入的表現。我們的媒體、數據和參與解決方案部門有機下降了 60 個基點。Acxiom 的強勁成長被 MRM 的持續下降所抵消。由於受到追蹤帳戶損失的重大影響，Mediabrands 本季的銷售額略有下降，下降幅度不到 1%。該部門全年有機成長率為20個基點。

The organic decrease at our Integrated Advertising and Creativity-led Solutions segment was negative 4.7%. In large measure, performance reflects the decision of a single size of a client in the healthcare sector early in the year. We continue to have strong growth at Deutsche, and we had solid performance in the quarter at McCann, notably in the international markets. For the year, the segment decreased organically by 20 basis points.

我們綜合廣告和創意主導解決方案部門的自然降幅為負 4.7%。很大程度上，業績反映了年初醫療保健產業單一客戶規模的決策。德意志銀行持續保持強勁成長，麥肯本季表現穩健，尤其是在國際市場。全年該部門有機下降了 20 個基點。

At our Specialized Communication and Experiential Solutions segment, organic growth was 1.3%. We had growth at Golin, in public relations and at Momentum and Octagon in experiential offerings, which were more than offset by softness elsewhere in the segment. For the year, the SC&E segment grew 1.3% organically.

在我們的專業通訊和體驗解決方案部門，有機成長率為 1.3%。Golin 公共關係部門、Momentum 和 Octagon 體驗式服務部門都取得了成長，但這被該領域其他部門的疲軟表現所抵消。今年，SC&E 部門有機成長了 1.3%。

Moving on to slide 5, our revenue growth by region in the quarter. The US, which was 60% of our fourth-quarter net revenue, decreased 3.2% organically, reflecting the impact of certain accounts lost in late '23 and during 2024, the [weight] on our growth broadly across our domestic operations.

第 5 頁是我們本季按地區劃分的收入成長。美國市場占我們第四季度淨收入的 60%，有機下降了 3.2%，反映了 2023 年末和 2024 年期間丟失的某些帳戶的影響，這對我們整個國內業務的增長產生了影響。

International markets were 40% of our net revenue in the quarter and increased 30 basis points organically. In the UK, 9% of our -- which was 9% of our revenue in the quarter, the organic decrease was 3.3%.

國際市場佔本季淨收入的 40%，有機成長 30 個基點。在英國，我們本季營收的 9% 的有機降幅為 3.3%。

Growth at Acxiom and Dolan was more than offset by decreases elsewhere in the portfolio. Continental Europe was 10% of our net revenue in the quarter and decreased 3% organically, which was against 11.7% growth a year ago. Declines in regional spending by global clients weighed on performance with the results notably soft in Germany and France.

Acxiom 和 Dolan 的成長被投資組合中其他部分的下降所抵消。歐洲大陸佔本季我們淨收入的 10%，有機下降 3%，而去年同期的成長為 11.7%。全球客戶區域支出的下降對業績造成了壓力，其中德國和法國的表現尤其疲軟。

In Asia Pac, which was 8% of net revenue in the quarter, our organic decrease was 7.9%. The loss of certain global accounts weighed on results across the region. In LatAm, which was 6% of net revenue in the quarter, we grew 10.4% organically on top of 15% a year ago. Our strong growth was led by IPG Mediabrands and by market was led by Mexico, Argentina, and Colombia.

亞太地區佔本季淨收入的 8%，有機下降幅度為 7.9%。某些全球帳戶的遺失對該地區的業績產生了影響。拉美地區佔本季淨收入的 6%，在一年前 15% 的基礎上實現了 10.4% 的有機成長率。我們的強勁成長由 IPG Mediabrands 推動，按市場劃分，則由墨西哥、阿根廷和哥倫比亞主導。

Our other international markets group, which consists of Canada, the Middle East and Africa, was 7% of net revenue in Q4 and grew 12.1% organically. Performance was due to strong growth in the Middle East where business rebounded from the impact of the events the year before.

我們的其他國際市場包括加拿大、中東和非洲，佔第四季淨收入的 7%，有機成長率為 12.1%。業績表現得益於中東地區的強勁成長，該地區業務已從去年事件的影響中反彈。

Moving on to slide 6 and operating expenses in the quarter. Our fully adjusted EBITA margin in the quarter was 24.3%, which is the same level we attained in the fourth quarter of 2023. Our ratio of total salaries and related expenses improved 70 basis points to 58.7% compared with 59.4% in last year's fourth quarter. We have leveraged our base payroll and temporary labor, partially offset by higher expense for performance-based incentive programs due to the timing of accruals over the course of the year and increased severance expense. We ended the year with headcount of 53,300, which reflects an organic decrease of approximately 5% from a year ago and a total decrease of 7%, including our net business dispositions.

前往投影片 6 並查看本季的營運費用。本季我們全面調整後的 EBITA 利潤率為 24.3%，與 2023 年第四季的水準相同。我們的總薪資及相關費用比率從去年第四季的59.4%提高了70個基點，達到58.7%。我們充分利用了基本工資和臨時勞動力，但由於全年應計時間表以及遣散費增加，績效激勵計劃的費用增加部分抵消了這一影響。截至去年底，我們的員工總數為 53,300 人，與去年同期相比有機減少約 5%，如果包括淨業務處置在內，總減少量為 7%。

Our office and other direct expense increased as a percent of net revenue by 20 basis points to 13.8%. Occupancy expense was flat as a percentage of net revenue, while all other office and other direct expense increased by 20 basis points, mainly due to higher levels of investment in technology.

我們的辦公室和其他直接費用佔淨收入的百分比增加了20個基點，達到13.8%。佔用費用佔淨收入的百分比持平，而所有其他辦公室和其他直接費用增加了 20 個基點，這主要是由於技術投資水平較高。

Our SG&A expense was 1.8% of net revenue, an increase of 90 basis points from a year ago due to $9.3 million of expenses related to the planned acquisition by Omnicom and strategic investments in senior enterprise talent and platform development. These expense ratios for the full year are available in the presentation appendix and reflect the same drivers that were at work in the fourth quarter -- strong leverage on salaries, offset by greater technology investments and increased strategic hiring in SG&A.

我們的銷售、一般及行政開支佔淨收入的 1.8%，較去年同期增加 90 個基點，原因是與宏盟集團計劃收購以及對高級企業人才和平台開發的戰略投資相關的開支為 930 萬美元。這些全年費用率可在附錄中找到，它們反映了第四季度的相同驅動因素——強勁的薪資槓桿，但被更大的技術投資和銷售、一般及行政開支中戰略性招聘的增加所抵消。

Turning to slide 7, we present detail on adjustments to our reported fourth-quarter results in order to give you better transparency and a picture of comparable performance. This begins on the left-hand side with our reported results and steps through to adjusted EBITDA and our adjusted diluted EPS.

第 7 頁，我們詳細介紹了對報告的第四季度業績進行調整的情況，以便為您提供更好的透明度和可比業績的情況。從左側開始，是我們報告的結果，然後逐步顯示調整後的 EBITDA 和調整後的稀釋每股收益。

Our expense for the amortization of acquired intangibles in the second column was $20.4 million. The small restructuring reversal was $6.4 million. Deal costs pertaining to the planned acquisition by Omnicom were $9.3 million. Below operating expenses, our net loss due to assets held for sale and the sales of nonstrategic businesses was $57.8 million. At the foot of the slide, you can see the after-tax impact per diluted share of each of these adjustments, which produced fourth-quarter diluted EPS as reported at $0.92 to adjusted earnings of $1.11 per diluted share.

第二欄我們用於攤提收購無形資產的費用為 2,040 萬美元。小規模重組逆轉金額為 640 萬美元。宏盟集團計劃收購的交易成本為 930 萬美元。在營業費用之下，我們因持有待售資產和非策略性業務銷售而產生的淨虧損為 5,780 萬美元。在投影片的底部，您可以看到每項調整對每股攤薄收益的稅後影響，這些調整導致第四季度每股攤薄收益為 0.92 美元，調整後每股攤薄收益為 1.11 美元。

Slide 8 similarly depicts adjustments for the full year, again, for continuity and comparability, bridging diluted earnings per share as reported of $1.83 to our adjusted $2.77 per share. It's also worth noting that shown on this schedule, our adjusted effective tax rate for the full year was 25.2% which is in line with our expectations.

投影片 8 同樣描述了全年的調整，同樣是為了連續性和可比性，將報告的每股攤薄收益 1.83 美元與我們的調整後每股 2.77 美元進行調整。另外值得注意的是，如該表所示，我們全年調整後的有效稅率為 25.2%，符合我們的預期。

On slide 6 (sic - "9"), we turn to cash flow for the full year. Cash from operations was $1.06 billion and was $1.22 billion before changes in working capital. Our investing activities used $151.1 million, mainly for CapEx and of $141.8 million. Our financing activities, usability (inaudible) mainly as shown here, were dividends on common stock and the repayment of debt in April and repurchases of our shares. Our net decrease in cash for the year was $198.7 million.

在第 6 張投影片（原文如此 - “9”）上，我們討論全年現金流。營運現金流為 10.6 億美元，營運資本變動前為 12.2 億美元。我們的投資活動使用了 1.511 億美元，主要用於資本支出，為 1.418 億美元。我們的融資活動，可用性（聽不清楚）主要如下所示，是普通股股息和四月份債務償還以及回購我們的股票。我們本年度的現金淨減少額為 1.987 億美元。

Slide 10 is the current portion of our balance sheet. We ended the year with $2.2 billion of cash and equivalents. Slide 11 depicts the maturities of our outstanding debt and our diversified maturity schedule. Total debt at year-end was $3 billion, and our next scheduled maturity is not until 2028.

投影片 10 是我們資產負債表的當前部分。我們截至年底的現金和等價物為 22 億美元。投影片 11 描述了我們未償還債務的到期日和多樣化的到期計畫。年末總債務為 30 億美元，我們的下一個預定到期日是 2028 年。

In summary, our strong financial discipline continues and the strength of our balance and liquidity mean that we remain well positioned, both financially and commercially. And with that, I'll turn it back to Philippe.

總而言之，我們繼續保持嚴格的財務紀律，而我們強大的財務餘額和流動性意味著我們在財務和商業方面都保持著良好的地位。現在，我將話題轉回給菲利普。

Thanks, Ellen. As you've heard from us previously, until we have regulatory approvals and the proposed combination with Omnicom is complete, we continue to be in market as an independent company. So I'll review the particulars of our performance as I would on any other quarterly call.

謝謝，艾倫。正如您之前所聽到的，在我們獲得監管部門批准並且與宏盟集團的合併計劃完成之前，我們將繼續作為一家獨立公司進入市場。因此，我將像在任何其他季度電話會議上一樣回顧我們的業績細節。

An important announcement during Q4 related to the continued enhancement of Interact, the suite of integrated end-to-end technologies across our portfolio, and that's the latest evolution of our core technology infrastructure and marketing engine. This operating system integrates data flows across the consumer journey, from research and insights to creative ideation, production and commerce, as well as powering media activation.

第四季度的一個重要公告涉及持續增強 Interact，這是我們產品組合中整合的端到端技術套件，也是我們核心技術基礎設施和行銷引擎的最新發展。該作業系統整合了消費者旅程中的資料流，從研究和洞察到創意構思、生產和商業，並為媒體活化提供支援。

Built and developed by our in-house product team, Interact represents many years of investing, refining, and unifying core capabilities to ensure we can drive sustainable growth for our clients, whether in marketing or sales channels. And it's a foundational element of our go-to-market strategy. It's being used by a growing number of Interpublic companies on behalf of their clients.

Interact 由我們的內部產品團隊建立和開發，代表了多年的投資、改進和統一核心能力，以確保我們能夠為客戶推動永續成長，無論是在行銷還是銷售管道。這是我們行銷策略的基礎要素。越來越多的 Interpublic 公司代表其客戶使用它。

In the quarter, we also announced the planned acquisition of Intelligence Node, a leading e-commerce intelligence platform known for its data accuracy and global reach specific to retail data. Intelligence Node's technology leverages AI to aggregate and analyze billions of data points across thousands of retail categories in over 30 global markets, delivering dynamic insights into consumer sentiment and a range of product attributes, including pricing, product availability, and inventory levels as well as retail media. This move significantly enhances our existing commerce capabilities, providing clients with real-time intelligence to understand shopper trends, optimize performance in digital retail marketplaces and drive sales growth.

本季度，我們也宣布計劃收購 Intelligence Node，這是一個領先的電子商務智慧平台，以其數據準確性和針對零售數據的全球影響力而聞名。Intelligence Node 的技術利用人工智慧來匯總和分析全球 30 多個市場中數千個零售類別的數十億個數據點，從而提供有關消費者情緒和一系列產品屬性（包括定價、產品可用性、庫存水平以及零售媒體）的動態洞察。此舉大大增強了我們現有的商業能力，為客戶提供即時情報，以了解購物者趨勢，優化數位零售市場的表現並推動銷售成長。

In terms of operating unit level performance during 2024, IPG Mediabrands posted solid growth, and we saw a number of sizable new business wins to close the year. In the fourth quarter, Amgen and HelloFresh kept Mediabrands as their AOR, and Volvo chose Initiative as its global media agency. The network also retained Unilever in LatAm and grew the business in Canada and MENA as part of that client's global media review. Mediahub was named AOR for Little Caesars, and earlier this month, Alaska Air tapped UM as its US media partner.

就 2024 年營運單位層級的表現而言，IPG Mediabrands 實現了穩健的成長，並且在年底我們看到了許多規模可觀的新業務勝利。第四季度，安進和 HelloFresh 保留 Mediabrands 作為其 AOR，沃爾沃選擇 Initiative 作為其全球媒體代理商。該網絡還保留了聯合利華在拉丁美洲地區的業務，並作為該客戶全球媒體審查的一部分，擴大了其在加拿大和中東及北非地區的業務。Mediahub 被任命為 Little Caesars 的 AOR，本月初，阿拉斯加航空選定 UM 為其美國媒體合作夥伴。

Acxiom also posted good growth for the full year and in the quarter, which featured four large new business wins across industry sectors, including technology, financial services, healthcare, and the public sector. These new engagements reflect Acxiom's expertise in leveraging first and third-party data to solve complex business challenges and helping clients maximize their own tech investments.

Acxiom 全年和本季均實現了良好的成長，在科技、金融服務、醫療保健和公共部門等行業領域贏得了四項大型新業務。這些新的合作體現了 Acxiom 在利用第一方和第三方資料解決複雜業務挑戰以及幫助客戶最大化其技術投資方面的專業知識。

We also consolidated all of IPG's Salesforce cloud services under Acxiom, which now offers clients consulting implementation and operational services across the full suite of Salesforce clouds as part of IPG's centralized platform services. IPG Health continued to be the best-in-class creative network in its space, winning top honors at the M&M Awards and the London International Awards. The network also expanded partnerships with clients -- certain key clients in the quarter, including AstraZeneca, Merck, Regeneron, and Edwards Life Sciences.

我們也將 IPG 的所有 Salesforce 雲端服務整合到 Acxiom 旗下，作為 IPG 集中平台服務的一部分，Acxiom 現在為客戶提供跨全套 Salesforce 雲端的諮詢實施和營運服務。IPG Health 繼續成為其領域中一流的創意網絡，並在 M&M 大獎和倫敦國際大獎中獲得最高榮譽。該網絡還擴大了與客戶的合作夥伴關係——本季度的某些關鍵客戶包括阿斯特捷利康、默克、再生元和愛德華生命科學。

Our earned media solutions continue to evolve with leading offerings. Weber Shandwick launched a differentiated influencer offering that marries Acxiom data with cultural and commercial impact. And the company has added nearly a dozen new client assignments in the area using this tool and also won the Effie award for the year's most effective influencer campaign for its work on behalf of Kellanova.

我們的贏得媒體解決方案不斷發展，提供領先的產品。萬博宣偉推出了一款差異化影響力產品，將 Acxiom 數據與文化和商業影響力結合在一起。該公司利用這項工具在該地區增加了近十幾個新客戶任務，並因代表凱拉諾瓦 (Kellanova) 開展的工作而榮獲艾菲年度最有效影響力活動獎。

During the quarter, Golin committed to being the first fully AI integrated PR agency by the end of this year. And over 80% of Golin's staff are now using AI as part of their daily workflows with more than 100 brands and clients benefiting from Golin's AI-assisted workforce.

在本季度，Golin 承諾在今年年底前成為第一家完全整合 AI 的公關公司。目前，Golin 超過 80% 的員工將 AI 作為日常工作流程的一部分，超過 100 個品牌和客戶從 Golin 的 AI 輔助員工中受益。

Our creative agencies continue to deliver powerful ideas that are winning in the marketplace for their clients. We've increasingly seen significant wins when we bring together creative, data, and production with audience-led thinking and identity resolution powered by Interact. This includes Kimberly-Clark, which recently expanded its relationship with Interpublic as part of their global consolidation review process, with FCB as a lead agency and support from both MullenLowe and McCann. And this was the second sizable win for us with this integrated team and offering after the Kellanova consolidation last year. Notably, work from FCB for another such client, Budweiser, secured the number one spot in the USA TODAY Ad Meter ranking for best commercial in this weekend's Super Bowl.

我們的創意機構不斷為客戶提供在市場上取得成功的強大創意。當我們將創意、數據和製作與 Interact 提供支援的受眾主導的思維和識別解決方案結合在一起時，我們越來越多地看到了顯著的成功。其中包括金佰利，該公司最近擴大了與 Interpublic 的關係，作為其全球整合審查流程的一部分，由 FCB 擔任牽頭機構，並得到 MullenLowe 和 McCann 的支持。這是我們繼去年 Kellanova 合併之後，憑藉整合的團隊和產品的第二次重大勝利。值得注意的是，FCB 為另一位客戶百威製作的廣告在《今日美國》廣告計量器排名中榮登本週末超級盃最佳廣告榜首。

Of course, given the requirements of sophisticated modern marketers, we have to not only maintain our commitment to great talent and tech-enabled capabilities but give thoughtful consideration to new structures and ways of working. As mentioned in my opening comments, Q4 saw us finalize plans for the organizational restructuring we will be undertaking this year. This program will include streamlining efficiencies with -- in our agencies, centralization of a number of corporate functions, focus on greater offshoring and nearshoring, accelerating our progress on strategic centers of excellence in areas where platform services can benefit delivery and cost, such as production and analytics, as well as further improving our real estate footprint.

當然，考慮到現代行銷人員的複雜要求，我們不僅要保持對優秀人才和技術支援能力的承諾，還必須認真考慮新的結構和工作方式。正如我在開場白中提到的，我們在第四季完成了今年將進行的組織重組計畫。該計劃將包括在我們的機構內提高效率、集中一些公司職能、注重更多離岸外包和近岸外包、加快我們在平台服務可以有利於交付和成本的領域的戰略卓越中心的進展，例如生產和分析，以及進一步改善我們的房地產足跡。

These actions are necessary to ensure that a stand-alone IPG is in the strongest possible position despite our top-line challenges. While some of the cost savings we generate will be invested in talent and technology capabilities in areas such as AI, identity resolution, content management platforms, commerce and data, the strategic restructuring and transformation will deliver savings in 2025 that position us to maintain margins this year and expand them going forward.

這些措施非常必要，以確保儘管面臨營收挑戰，獨立的 IPG 仍能維持最強的地位。雖然我們節省的部分成本將投資於人工智慧、身分識別、內容管理平台、商業和數據等領域的人才和技術能力，但策略重組和轉型將在 2025 年帶來節省，使我們能夠在今年保持利潤率並在未來擴大利潤率。

These actions are independent of, and importantly, complementary to our proposed combination with Omnicom, which will create the industry's most dynamic and well-resourced company. As I called out earlier, we believe there is limited overlap between the impact of these efforts and the synergies identified as a result of the proposed acquisition by Omnicom.

這些舉措與我們與宏盟集團的擬議合併是相互獨立的，更重要的是，這些舉措是相互補充的。正如我之前提到的，我們認為這些努力的影響與宏盟集團擬議收購所產生的協同效應之間的重疊有限。

Turning now to slide 12, we outlined the full range of benefits that a combined Omnicom and Interpublic will deliver to our various stakeholders. For our clients and our people, expanded and enhanced products and services will mean significant value. Our combined operations will be positioned to offer clients multiple advantages that are unduplicated and superior to anything currently in market. They include media offerings that leverage an unparalleled scope and quality of investment data and technology.

現在翻到第 12 張投影片，我們概述了 Omnicom 和 Interpublic 合併後將為我們的各個利害關係人帶來的全部利益。對我們的客戶和員工來說，擴大和增強產品和服務將意味著巨大的價值。我們的綜合業務將為客戶提供多種優勢，這些優勢是目前市場上任何產品都無法複製且優於任何產品。其中包括利用無與倫比的投資數據和技術的範圍和品質的媒體產品。

The proposed transaction will also enhance our collective commerce offerings and technology investments, bringing together specialized capabilities on both sides. In addition, our companies have highly complementary geographic footprints and a shared foundation of common values and culture.

擬議的交易也將增強我們的集體商業產品和技術投資，整合雙方的專業能力。此外，我們公司的地理分佈高度互補，並擁有共同的價值觀和文化基礎。

With respect to technology, the combined company will have exceptional identity resolution and commerce offerings based on a deeper understanding of consumers than any other provider. In terms of GenAI technologies, like some of our competitors at Interpublic, we've moved well beyond testing and are applying LLMs and proprietary tools across media, creative, experiential agencies, and other areas of our business.

在技​​術方面，合併後的公司將比任何其他供應商更深入地了解消費者，提供卓越的身份識別和商業產品。在 GenAI 技術方面，與 Interpublic 的一些競爭對手一樣，我們已經遠遠超出了測試的階段，正在將 LLM 和專有工具應用於媒體、創意、體驗機構和其他業務領域。

Together with Omnicom, we would be able to bring to market the combined resources of both companies, focusing our investment and then amplifying it against the larger platform. For clients, this means a foundation of compelling benefits, creating a seamless ecosystem where data, technology, and creativity come together to drive innovation and deliver measurable business growth and outcomes against clearly defined KPIs. That's why we believe the differentiated offerings that will result from the combination will drive exceptional future revenue growth opportunities.

與宏盟集團攜手合作，我們將能夠把兩家公司的綜合資源推向市場，集中我們的投資，然後在更大的平台上擴大其影響力。對客戶而言，這意味著以令人信服的利益為基礎，創建一個無縫的生態系統，其中數據、技術和創造力共同推動創新，並根據明確定義的關鍵績效指標實現可衡量的業務成長和成果。這就是為什麼我們相信合併產生的差異化產品將帶來巨大的未來收入成長機會。

I think it needs to be said because there's been so much that has been said by others who are not part of the proposed transaction, that our partners have been enthusiastic about our combination with Omnicom. Our client-facing colleagues within Interpublic, from those who create ideas to those who advise clients on their investment decisions to those who innovate with tech and data, they are all looking forward to the wider array of capabilities that we would be able to bring to marketers. Our teams appreciate that nobody in the industry has as comprehensive a solution as we will together with Omnicom.

我認為有必要說出來，因為其他未參與擬議交易的人已經多次表示，我們的合作夥伴對於我們與宏盟的合併非常熱情。在 Interpublic 內部，我們面向客戶的同事，從提出創意的人，到為客戶提供投資決策建議的人，再到利用技術和數據進行創新的人，都期待著我們能夠為行銷人員帶來更廣泛的能力。我們的團隊意識到，業內沒有人能夠像我們與 Omnicom 合作提供如此全面的解決方案。

As you'd expect, we've also spoken with our top clients. They see the benefits and understand that our partnerships and the value we can deliver for them will be meaningfully enhanced. So while we understand that our competitors are trying to disrupt what we are looking to build, it bears repeating that the integration will remain very focused and not get in the way of the services we deliver to clients every day.

正如您所期望的，我們也與我們的頂級客戶進行了交談。他們看到了好處，並明白我們的合作關係以及我們能為他們帶來的價值將會顯著提升。因此，雖然我們理解我們的競爭對手正在試圖破壞我們正在建立的東西，但值得重申的是，整合將保持高度集中，不會妨礙我們每天向客戶提供的服務。

You've heard about the financial benefits, both when we announced the deal and on Omnicom's call last week. From the revenue and cost synergies to the powerful balance sheet that will support capital return and accelerate innovation, to the accretive nature of the deal, it is a very compelling proposition.

在我們宣布這筆交易時以及上週宏盟集團的電話會議上，您都已經聽說了這項交易帶來的財務利益。從收入和成本協同效應，到支持資本回報和加速創新的強大資產負債表，再到交易的增值性質，這是一個非常引人注目的提議。

In terms of timing, the regulatory process is moving forward. We are progressing in the HSR review. And on February 10, we refiled our HSR filing to continue that process, which is commonplace for transactions of this type. Foreign filing processes are also well underway and the special shareholder meetings to approve the transaction are scheduled for March 18. We continue to expect to close in the back half of this year.

從時間角度來看，監管進程正在推進。我們在 HSR 審查方面正在取得進展。2 月 10 日，我們重新提交了 HSR 檔案以繼續流程，這對於此類交易來說很常見。海外申報程序也在順利進行中，批准交易的特別股東大會定於 3 月 18 日舉行。我們仍預計在今年下半年完成交易。

In the interim, as we've outlined for you today, we are taking steps to keep Interpublic competitively positioned for future success. Our strategic actions will bring us into the combination as the strongest possible company and we'll continue to build on our ability to deliver integrated client-focused services and solutions, and further align and extend key data and technology capabilities as well as remain true to our long-standing commitment to operational discipline and a strong underlying financial foundation.

在此期間，正如我們今天向您概述的那樣，我們正在採取措施保持 Interpublic 的競爭優勢，以取得未來的成功。我們的策略行動將使我們成為合併後最強大的公司，我們將繼續增強提供以客戶為中心的綜合服務和解決方案的能力，進一步調整和擴展關鍵數據和技術能力，並繼續恪守我們對營運紀律和強大財務基礎的長期承諾。

Thanks for your time today. And at this point, let's open the floor to your questions.

感謝您今天抽出時間。現在，讓我們開始回答大家的提問。

(Operator Instructions) David Karnovsky, JPMorgan.

（操作員指示）摩根大通的 David Karnovsky。

Maybe just first with [Philippe]. On the underlying conditions, I think you noted improvement through last year, but maybe some incremental caution now due to the macro, especially in certain sectors. I wanted to see if you could expand on this a bit and also touch on tech where I think you said you'd return to growth.

也許首先[菲利普]。就基本條件而言，我認為你注意到去年有所改善，但現在可能由於宏觀因素而需要謹慎行事，尤其是在某些領域。我想看看您是否可以稍微擴展一下這一點，並談談技術，我認為您說過您會恢復增長。

And then second for Ellen, on the accelerated business transformation, the $250 million of net cost savings, can you help us understand that figure against the flat margin guide? What is actually realized this year versus items like severance that will show up in adjusted EBITA? And then is it reasonable to be extrapolating those savings out to, say, '26 with the implication that you would see a notable step-up in margin assuming steady revenue? Thanks.

其次，對艾倫來說，關於加速業務轉型，2.5 億美元的淨成本節約，您能幫助我們理解這個數字與平穩利潤指南相比的情況嗎？與裁員費等將出現在調整後 EBITA 中的項目相比，今年實際實現了多少收益？那麼，將這些節省的金額推斷到 26 年是否合理，這意味著在收入穩定的情況下，利潤率將顯著上升？謝謝。

On the revenue question, I mean, I think what I would just do is we've tried to give you a clear line of sight to the ups and downs of '25 and the degree to which just a number of those very large losses are weighing on the performance. So if you're looking at 4.5% to 5% of drag, clearly, the underlying business is getting us back to the guide, not that we're happy that that has to be the guide.

關於收入問題，我的意思是，我想我要做的是，我們試圖讓您清楚地了解 25 年的起伏，以及這些巨額損失對業績的影響程度。因此，如果您看到 4.5% 到 5% 的阻力，顯然，基礎業務正在讓我們回到指南，但我們並不高興這必須成為指南。

In terms of the fourth quarter, the runoff, certain of the accounts we mentioned was probably greater than expected. So cumulative way in Q4 of, again, just a few trailing losses was about 4% in the quarter. So all of that says to us that there's no new news, it's really timing.

就第四季而言，我們提到的某些帳戶的虧損可能超出預期。因此，第四季的累計虧損再次出現，該季度的虧損約為 4%。所以，所有這些都告訴我們，沒有什麼新消息，這只是時機問題。

And then at a macro level, I think you heard us say towards the back half of the year that it looked as if people were (inaudible) and beginning to really get -- but with the reality that they needed to just start to make plans and invest in growth. There's one or two client categories or there's just -- you look at the degree to which there's some geopolitical macro that is uncertain. So I think it's just giving people kind of -- it's just a slight downshift. It's nothing dramatic.

然後在宏觀層面上，我想你聽到我們說過，在下半年，看起來人們（聽不清楚）開始真正明白——但現實是，他們只需要開始製定計劃並投資於成長。有一兩個客戶類別，或只是──你要看看某些地緣政治宏觀的不確定程度。所以我認為這只是給人們一種——只是輕微的降檔。沒什麼戲劇性的。

Good morning, David. Thank you for your question. Regarding the business transformation and how it relates to the restructuring, I would say it's a continuation. All through 2024, we talked about how we were implementing common systems and standardizing our processes, which enables you to create centers of excellence. And a lot of what the restructuring is doing is doing just that, which is allowing us to be more efficient in the ways that we operate and more effective in the way we service our clients. And those are the types of things that we called out in prepared remark.

早安，大衛。感謝您的提問。至於業務轉型及其與重組的關係，我認為這是一種延續。在整個 2024 年，我們一直在討論如何實施通用系統和標準化流程，這使您能夠創建卓越中心。重組所做的許多工作正是這樣的，它使我們的營運方式更加高效，為客戶提供服務的方式更加有效。這些正是我們在準備好的發言中所提到的內容。

As far as expenses and savings, we said we think the charges in '25 will equate approximately to the savings in the year, with more to come in future years, which will lead to expanded margins going ahead.

至於費用和儲蓄，我們表示，我們認為 25 年的費用將大致相當於當年的儲蓄，未來幾年還會有更多，這將導致未來利潤率的擴大。

Michael Nathanson, MoffettNathanson.

邁克爾·納桑森（Michael Nathanson），莫菲特·納桑森（MoffettNathanson）。

It was notable that you called out principal media as a factor for some of the client losses. Can you talk a bit about your ability, if this deal is done, how quickly do you think you could integrate the principal media business with Mediabrand? So that seems like a big opportunity on the top line to maybe fix some of the losses. So if you talk about like your thesis on why it was better to merge than to build at that point for principal media?

值得注意的是，您指出主要媒體是造成部分客戶流失的因素。能否談談你們的能力？因此，這似乎是一個很大的機會，也許可以彌補部分損失。那麼，如果您談論您的論點，為什麼對於主要媒體而言，合併比新建更好？

Look, I mean I don't think that you would -- I would introduce that there are so many parts of and so many strategic benefits to the merger. So yes, for us in '24, our media business, which has been a very strong performer for a long time, ran into challenges, and that was an area that we felt was of concern.

聽著，我的意思是我不認為你會——我會介紹說，合併有很多部分，有很多戰略利益。所以是的，對我們來說，在24年，我們的媒體業務長期以來一直表現非常強勁，但也遇到了挑戰，這是我們感到擔憂的一個領域。

So to the extent that you got in our perspective, soon to be partner, a great deal of expertise in that regard and then presence because you heard from us that we felt good about the rate in which we were able to bring -- build a principal ourselves domestically, kind of in the US, the options we were getting from clients, the degree to which we were able to put together a very sophisticated contemporary service offering and products there, I think that marrying that up to connecting it given the fact that Omnicom is sophisticated in that regard that they do this well and that they do this globally clearly is a benefit.

因此，從我們的角度來看，我們即將成為合作夥伴，在這方面擁有豐富的專業知識和存在感，因為您從我們這裡聽說了，我們對能夠帶來的速度感到滿意——在美國國內建立一個主要機構，我們從客戶那裡得到的選擇，我們能夠在那裡整合非常複雜的現代服務和產品的程度，我認為考慮到盟在這方面很成熟，他們是一種優勢，而且顯然將其結合起來，顯然在全球這方面很成熟，他們是一種優勢，而且顯然將其結合起來，顯然在全球範圍內。

But I think that there's just so much more about what and how the companies fit together. There's so much as complementary. The opportunity is much greater than, which is not to say that this is not one of the opportunity areas.

但我認為，關於公司之間如何合作、合作內容還有很多。還有許多互補的東西。機會遠大於，但這並不是說這不是機會領域之一。

Julien Roch, Barclays.

巴克萊銀行的朱利安·羅奇（Julien Roch）。

My first question is in the proxy statement, you presented forecast where you have 110-basis-point margin improvement in '26 and 100 basis point in '27, which is well above consensus. So can you confirm the forecast? And do you need more than the $250 million of savings you announced today to get there, i.e., we'll get another round of cost-cutting next year. Or with today's announcement, that's how you get to those margin improvement. That's my first question.

我的第一個問題是，在代理聲明中，您提出了預測，即 26 年利潤率將提高 110 個基點，27 年利潤率將提高 100 個基點，這遠高於普遍預期。那您能確認這個預測嗎？為了實現這一目標，您是否需要節省超過今天宣布的 2.5 億美元，也就是說，我們明年將進行另一輪成本削減？或者透過今天的公告，這就是你實現利潤率提高的方式。這是我的第一個問題。

The second one is as you said that those savings you've announced today are largely independent from the $750 million. Kind of philosophically, if I take the -- to get the EBITDA for the combined group, do I take what you have in the proxy statement forecast and just add $750 million to get combined EBITA? Because some clients are telling me that you'll have some cost creep and (inaudible) that.

第二個問題正如您所說，今天宣布的節省基本上與 7.5 億美元無關。從哲學角度來說，如果我要獲得合併後集團的 EBITDA，我是否應該採用代理聲明中的預測，然後再添加 7.5 億美元來獲得合併 EBITA？因為有些客戶告訴我，你的成本會增加，而且（聽不清楚）。

And then the last one, both John and yourself have said that client facing would be absolutely fine, would be better because they have better tools once you'd combine and that the merger benefit were mostly merging the back office. But if you do that and you do not consolidate any brands, you will end up as a combined company with eight global media agencies and eight global creative agencies. Is that the right number? Thank you.

最後一個問題，約翰和您都說過，面向客戶絕對沒問題，會更好，因為一旦合併，他們就會有更好的工具，而且合併的好處主要是合併後台辦公室。但如果你這樣做而不合併任何品牌，你最終會成為一家擁有八家全球媒體機構和八家全球創意機構的合併公司。這個數字正確嗎？謝謝。

That's an awful lot to wrap one's head around in the time that we've got. So I guess I will start with the modeling that you would have seen in the filings was (technical difficulty) and clearly, it reflects the work that we shared with you that we are doing now. You've seen us in the past in act programs like this, and you've seen that they lead to tangible success.

就我們所能掌握的時間而言，這實在是太多了，需要我們去思考。所以我想我將從您在文件中看到的建模開始（技術難度），顯然，它反映了我們與您分享的我們現在正在做的工作。您過去曾在類似的行動計劃中看到過我們，並且已經看到它們取得了切實的成功。

The degree to which having gone through the exercise that led to the cost synergies around the acquisition, the merger with John and his management team, we do understand these to be -- there's very limited overlap there. And then you start asking questions about running a very sizable enterprise. And so the benefits of all of the things that John called out around these two large companies together, the corporate compensation, the corporate SG&A, clearly, our presence in market and vendor cost savings, shared services, things of that nature, they're very, very significant.

在經歷了導致收購、與約翰及其管理團隊合併的成本協同效應之後，我們確實了解到這些——那裡的重疊部分非常有限。然後你開始詢問有關經營規模很大的企業的問題。因此，約翰提到的這兩家大公司合併帶來的所有好處，包括公司薪酬、公司銷售、一般及行政開支、我們在市場上的存在以及供應商成本節約、共享服務等等，都是非常非常重要的。

Our people and our clients are responding very, very well because as I've said, and I laid it out, I think, in a fair amount of detail, they see that as our businesses continue to evolve, and the investment that needs to happen in technology, the fit that we've got from a geographic point of view, what Flywheel and Acxiom can do together, the strength that Omnicom has through Credera, on the [Adobe act], there are just many, many things that fit together to the point of -- the answer to Michael's question.

我們的員工和客戶反應非常非常好，因為正如我所說的，而且我已經相當詳細地闡述過了，他們看到，隨著我們的業務不斷發展，需要在技術方面進行投資，從地理角度來看，我們的契合度、Flywheel 和 Acxiom 可以共同實現的目標、Omnicom 透過 Credera 所擁有的優勢，以及 [Adobe 行動]，有很多東西可以回答」邁克爾的問題，如邁克爾所擁有的優勢，以及 [Adobe 行動]，有很多問題可以回答。

I think that the -- sitting here now and kind of going to a kind of gee, how many brands, what's the optimal organizational structure, I think what I would just point out to you is direction of travel -- and you used the word philosophically. We're very aligned with Omnicom in terms of the fact that we have a commitment to strong agency brands. We win with talent by giving them the opportunity to come into the company within the cultures of those brands and then that talent wins for us with clients.

我認為——現在坐在這裡，有點像在思考，有多少個品牌，最佳的組織結構是什麼，我想我只想向你們指出旅行的方向——你用了哲學這個詞。我們與宏盟集團在致力於打造強大的代理品牌方面意見一致。我們給予人才機會，讓他們進入公司並融入這些品牌的文化，從而贏得他們的青睞，然後這些人才又會為我們贏得客戶。

Clearly, at the holding company level, we pick the strongest agency providers and put them into the teams that solve for the client. And increasingly, we've heard us talk about how we combine like-for-like to create centers of excellence and how then that ties into the platform services.

顯然，在控股公司層面，我們選擇最強大的代理商供應商，並將其納入為客戶解決問題的團隊中。我們越來越常聽到人們談論如何結合同類事物來創建卓越中心，以及如何將其與平台服務結合。

So I don't know that answering the question about, gee, how many events is the optimal number at this point is super productive. But I think that we will have -- we'll be able to go to clients and give them options and very strong options in every one of the capability areas that matter. And we've got very complementary capabilities. So again, the revenue, quote-unquote, synergy the revenue opportunity is meaningful, and we'll sort out the flying formation, but I don't think we'll do it the next three minutes on this call. But hopefully, that gives you line of sight. That was a lot of questions in a finite period of time, so I think I covered most of what you asked.

所以我不知道回答這個問題「此時此刻最佳活動數量是多少」是否非常有成效。但我認為，我們將能夠為客戶提供選擇，並且在每一個重要的能力領域為他們提供非常強大的選擇。我們的能力具有很強的互補性。所以，再說一次，收入，所謂的協同效應，收入機會是有意義的，我們會理清飛行編隊，但我不認為我們會在接下來的三分鐘內完成這件事。但希望這能給你視線。在有限的時間內提出了這麼多問題，所以我認為我已經涵蓋了你問到的大部分問題。

No, you did. Sorry for being too ambitious, but thank you for an excellent summary.

不，你做到了。抱歉，我的目標太高，但還是感謝您的出色總結。

Jason Bazinet, Citi.

花旗銀行的 Jason Bazinet。

I just had one quick follow-up on the $250 million of savings. Can you just talk a little bit more about the cost to achieve those? I was just a little bit confused when you called out the noncash component of those costs to achieve being significant.

我剛剛對 2.5 億美元的節省進行了一次快速的跟進。能否再稍微談談實現這些目標的成本？當您指出這些成本中的非現金部分非常重要時，我感到有點困惑。

I think it's equivalent, as we said, and there will be some real estate, and there will be some degree to which we might also -- as we rationalize and standardize, to Ellen's point, some of our tech investments, we might be writing off an asset or two there, but nothing dramatic.

我認為，正如我們所說的那樣，它是等價的，會有一些房地產，而且在某種程度上，我們可能也會——正如艾倫所說，隨著我們對我們的一些技術投資進行合理化和標準化，我們可能會註銷一兩項資產，但不會出現什麼戲劇性的事件。

There's nothing on the stock-based compensation side or anything, no?

股票薪酬方面什麼都沒有，是嗎？

No.

不。

Cameron McVeigh, Morgan Stanley.

摩根士丹利的卡梅倫·麥克維。

Just curious how the healthcare is trending when you exclude the impact of recent account losses. And then secondly, when you think about giving CMO in a pitch, curious how -- if their priorities have shifted at all recently. And is principal-based media buying, is that the most important capability now to win or retain new business? Or how are you thinking about that? Thanks.

只是好奇，當排除最近帳戶損失的影響時，醫療保健的趨勢如何。其次，當您考慮向 CMO 進行推廣時，您會好奇他們的優先事項最近是否發生了變化。基於委託人的媒體購買是否是目前贏得或保留新業務的最重要的能力？或者您對此有何看法？謝謝。

Sure. Healthcare, independent of that one sizable swing. We see healthcare as growing this year. And as you know, it's one of our large sort of operating units. It's a modicum of -- I mean, I think everybody, whatever it's been -- four, five, six months -- so was asking questions around that, and we were clearly giving you line of sight into. We've got every channel covered. We've got very, very deep subject matter expertise.

當然。醫療保健，與那次相當大的波動無關。我們認為今年醫療保健將會成長。如你所知，它是我們的大型營運單位之一。這是一點點——我的意思是，我想每個人，無論是四、五、六個月——都在問這方面的問題，我們清楚地讓你看到了這一點。我們已覆蓋每一個渠道。我們擁有非常非常深厚的專業知識。

And so if the playing field changes, all of those clients are still going to need to be in market. They're still going to need to be reaching not just consumers, but all of the other participants in the healthcare ecosystem, whether that's caregivers, whether that's doctors, whether that's so on and so forth. And so there will be some share shift in terms of how you reach them and that might have an impact on the media owner side. But we were clear that we didn't see that as a meaningful concern sitting where we are.

因此，如果競爭環境發生變化，所有這些客戶仍然需要進入市場。他們仍然需要接觸的不僅僅是消費者，還有醫療保健生態系統中的所有其他參與者，無論是護理人員、醫生還是等等。因此，在如何接觸這些客戶方面，份額會發生一些變化，這可能會對媒體所有者產生影響。但我們很清楚，就目前情況而言，我們並不認為這是一個有意義的擔憂。

And then on the CMO question, I think that we've called that principal because we built a media business that was very much about kind of consultative, highly database, sort of helping clients make the smartest possible investment decisions. That piece has come into the equation and for us is something we call out.

關於 CMO 的問題，我認為我們之所以稱之為原則，是因為我們建立的媒體業務主要是諮詢性的、高度資料庫性的，旨在幫助客戶做出最明智的投資決策。這個部分已經進入了方程式，對我們來說，這是一個需要關注的問題。

I think it's important, clearly, but I think that you see the largest opportunities around media because that's where you have the fusion of technology, a lot of data. Clearly, now commerce is a very important part of this, and there's conspicuous strength in commerce on the Omnicom side, and we see a big opportunity connecting Flywheel and Acxiom.

我認為這顯然很重要，但我認為最大的機會是在媒體周圍，因為那裡融合了技術和大量數據。顯然，現在商業是其中非常重要的一部分，而且 Omnicom 在商業方面實力顯著，我們看到 Flywheel 和 Acxiom 之間的連接存在巨大機會。

And you see some sizable integration opportunities like at Kellanova or [Kimberly-Clark] in the last six months. So no, I think it's more sophisticated than that. But that clearly has become a part of the decision matrix.

在過去六個月中，我們可以看到一些規模可觀的整合機會，例如 Kellanova 和金佰利。所以不，我認為它比這更複雜。但這顯然已成為決策矩陣的一部分。

Craig Huber, Huber Research Partners.

Craig Huber，Huber 研究夥伴。

Thank you. Philippe, I'd like to hear a little bit more, if I could, about how three sectors are doing: the healthcare, technology and retail/e-commerce. Maybe if you could give us how that organic growth reach or lack thereof did in the fourth quarter, maybe touch on your outlook for the new year for each of those. Thank you.

謝謝。菲利普，如果可以的話，我想多了解三個領域的發展：醫療保健、科技和零售/電子商務。也許您可以告訴我們第四季度有機成長達到或缺乏的情況，也許可以談談您對新年的展望。謝謝。

I mean, it's -- you're touching upon two in which we had these sizable losses, right? So obviously, we've talked a bit about the very big healthcare win that turned into a much smaller healthcare win for us and is impacting our results. The biggest media decision of the year last year was in the retail space.

我的意思是—您提到了我們遭受巨大損失的兩件事，對嗎？顯然，我們已經討論過醫療保健方面的巨大勝利，但實際上它變成了一項較小的勝利，並且影響了我們的表現。去年最大的媒體決策是在零售領域。

So as I said, I think independent of that one big swing item in health, we have healthcare growing this year, and it touches other parts of our world. You see healthcare clients in the media business. We've got a sizable healthcare practice on the PR side.

所以正如我所說的，我認為除了健康方面的重大變化之外，今年我們的醫療保健也在成長，並且影響到世界的其他領域。您會在媒體產業中看到醫療保健客戶。我們在公關方面擁有相當大的醫療保健業務。

Retail is just going to be muddied for us just because it's going to be the one very sizable loss there. And then tech and telco, as mentioned, has come back and is now growing for us. So I think that that probably covers it as best as I can. You're happening to pick two where we've got one very sizable item that's going to distort the result.

零售業對我們來說將是一個混亂的局面，因為這將是那裡的一個非常巨大的損失。如同先前所提到的，科技和電信已經回歸並且正在為我們帶來成長。所以我認為這可能已經是我所能最好地涵蓋的內容了。你恰好選擇了兩個，其中有一個非常大的項目會扭曲結果。

Fair enough. Obviously, they're important sectors for you guys and elsewhere. Ellen, if I could just ask you a nitpick question. The $250 million of in-year 2025 cost savings, what is that on an annual basis as we exit 2024? Is that more like $350 million? How should we think about that, please?

很公平。顯然，對你們和其他人來說，它們都是重要的領域。艾倫，我可以問你一個挑剔的問題嗎？2025 年的成本節省為 2.5 億美元，到 2024 年結束時，每年的成本節省金額是多少？這大概是 3.5 億美元吧？請問我們該如何考慮這個問題？

It's clearly going to be higher. We don't have a full year of the benefit in 2025. And I would just reemphasize that it's incremental to the synergies that we've called out relationship to Omnicom. I mean, what we're really talking about here, as I mentioned, was creating centers of excellence, which also allows our offering in nearshoring and just creating a lot more efficient operating structure, streamlining some of the operations at our agencies. So that should continue to benefit our margins, but again, very separate and apart from the deal synergies that we called out.

顯然，這個數字將會更高。我們沒有 2025 年全年的福利。我只想再次強調，這是我們與 Omnicom 之間協同效應的增量。我的意思是，正如我所提到的，我們在這裡真正談論的是創建卓越中心，這也使我們能夠提供近岸外包服務，並創建更有效率的營運結構，簡化我們機構的一些運作。因此，這應該會繼續有利於我們的利潤，但同樣，這與我們所說的交易協同效應截然不同。

And then, Philippe, if I could just squeeze in one more here before the market opens? I'd love to hear from you the tone of business out there, putting aside the various losses that you've talked about here, how do you feel about the tone of business right now, the macro environment versus, say, a year ago right now? I mean, what are your feedback from clients on that front? Thank you.

那麼，菲利普，我可以在市場開市前再擠出一點時間嗎？我很想聽聽您對目前商業環境的看法，拋開您剛才談到的各種損失不談，您覺得現在的商業環境、宏觀環境與一年前相比如何？我的意思是，客戶對此有何回饋？謝謝。

Well, I mean, as we said to you a year ago, if you go all the way back to a year ago, there was a measure of caution that as we move through '24, things (technical difficulty) meaningfully better, and we felt that people were leaning in towards the latter part of the year. And broadly speaking, I'd say that that's still the case, but there are one or two big items that are pending in terms of the macro.

嗯，我的意思是，正如我們一年前所說的那樣，如果回顧一年前，我們會發現，隨著我們進入 24 年，情況（技術難度）會明顯好轉，我們需要保持謹慎，並且我們覺得人們傾向於在今年下半年實現這一目標。從廣義上講，我認為情況仍然如此，但從宏觀角度來看，有一兩件大事仍有待解決。

But I think as we tried to call out in the remarks, we're seeing clients engaged. We're seeing a fair bit of opportunity in terms of new business flow. There's some bigger than not opportunities. So it feels pretty solid, I'd say.

但我認為，正如我們在評論中試圖指出的那樣，我們看到客戶參與其中。我們在新業務流程方面看到了相當多的機會。存在著一些比沒有更大的機會。所以我想說，它感覺非常堅固。

You're asking me, it's -- last year kind of had enough swing in it quarter-to-quarter. And when you say compared to last year, I don't want to say compared to what point in the year last year.

你問我，去年各季度之間的波動已經夠大了。當您說與去年相比時，我不想說與去年的什麼時候相比。

Yeah. I'm just trying to get a sense from you what you're hearing from your clients versus how they were feeling a year ago about their spending levels for the upcoming year.

是的。我只是想從您那裡了解您從客戶那裡聽到了什麼，以及他們一年前對來年的支出水平的感受。

Like I said, I mean, it does vary sector to sector. You don't necessarily get the same read. But it feels like, again, pending one or two kind of open macro items that are geopolitical, things are progressing.

就像我說的，我的意思是，它確實因行業而異。您不一定會得到相同的解讀。但感覺就像，等待一兩種地緣政治開放的宏觀項目，事情正在取得進展。

Thank you. Appreciate the time today, and I look forward to speaking to you all again in April.

謝謝。感謝您今天的時間，我期待著四月再次與大家交談。

Thank you. This concludes today's conference. You may disconnect at this time.

謝謝。今天的會議到此結束。您現在就可以斷開連線。