Omnicom tumbles after losing PepsiCo account to Publicis

Publicis wins biggest media account of the year but still loses ground

The six companies tracked by Marketing Report moved in different directions between September 1 and 8. Omnicom Group fell 5.8% after PepsiCo removed its global media business after three decades and awarded it to Publicis Groupe. S4 Capital was the biggest gainer, rising 1.3%. Publicis closed the week lower despite the account win.

Company	Sep 1	Sep 8	Change
WPP (GBp)	370.1	372.5	+0.6%
Publicis Groupe (EUR)	99.40	98.94	-0.5%
S4 Capital (GBp)	49.55	50.20	+1.3%
Dentsu Group (JPY)	3,726	3,607	-3.2%
Omnicom Group (USD)	86.09	81.13	-5.8%
Havas (EUR)	18.20	18.25	+0.3%

WPP

WPP gained 0.6% to close at 372.50 pence. On September 8, Deutsche Bank raised its price target from 425 to 555 pence and maintained its buy recommendation. Analyst sentiment remains divided. Of the seven analysts tracked by MarketBeat, two rate the stock a buy, three a hold and two a sell.

Publicis Groupe

Publicis fell 0.5% to close at €98.94, despite securing the year's biggest account win. On September 2, PepsiCo awarded its global media business to Publicis without a pitch, following a review of agency capabilities. The account involves approximately $1.9 billion in annual spending, including $780 million in North America, across more than 200 markets under the One PepsiCo model.

As a result of the win, Publicis is withdrawing from the ongoing pitch for Coca-Cola's remaining global media business, estimated at around $4 billion. The agency will retain Coca-Cola's North American media account, which it won last year and is estimated at approximately $800 million.

S4 Capital

S4 Capital rose 1.3% to 50.20 pence, making it the week's biggest gainer. Gartner placed Monks in the Leaders quadrant of its Magic Quadrant for Global Digital Marketing Agencies. S4 Capital announced the news on September 1.

Martin Sorrell, executive chairman of S4 Capital, said: "The traditional holding companies are structurally unable to move at the speed modern brands require, stuck in fragmented and analogue processes."

Dentsu Group

Dentsu fell 3.2% to 3,607 yen, giving back the previous week's gains following its alliance with Itochu. There was no confirmed company news during the reporting week.

The backdrop remains Dentsu's restructuring programme outlined on August 18. The group is considering eliminating up to 160 overseas entities through fiscal 2028 and aims to reduce global headquarters costs by 30%. The number of international entities has already been halved since January 2021, from more than 1,000.

Omnicom Group

Omnicom fell 5.8% to close at $81.13, the biggest decline among the six companies. The group learned several hours before the September 2 announcement that PepsiCo would move its global media business elsewhere after approximately 30 years. The stock fell 5% that same day to $81.76. Barclays estimates the annual loss in fees at $100 million.

Omnicom said in a statement: "After an extraordinarily long and successful relationship, PepsiCo has decided to move its media business elsewhere. We are proud of the work we have done together over three decades."

Creative work for PepsiCo will remain with BBDO, TBWA and Goodby Silverstein. In the second quarter of 2026, Omnicom reported revenue of $6.563 billion, compared with $4.016 billion a year earlier. Net income came to $585 million. The stock is trading approximately 20% below the average analyst price target of $99.

Havas

Havas gained 0.3% to close at €18.25. Between August 31 and September 4, the company repurchased 4,895 of its own shares at an average price of €18.34. Since the launch of its €50 million share buyback programme, 87,580 shares have been repurchased for €17.7 million.

Marketing Report Markets is an editorial analysis of share-price developments in the marcom sector and does not constitute investment advice.

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