WPP biggest gainer in broad marcom market rally

All six tracked marcom companies ended the week of 21–28 July in positive territory, presenting a rare display of unanimous gains

WPP posted the strongest performance with a gain of nearly 16%, followed by S4 Capital. Havas was the only company to record only marginal growth.

Company	21 July	28 July	Growth
WPP (GBp)	274.6	318.5	+16.0%
Publicis Groupe (EUR)	86.12	93.84	+9.0%
S4 Capital (GBp)	35.9	40.0	+11.4%
Dentsu Group (JPY)	3,465	3,622	+4.5%
Omnicom Group (USD)	79.21	86.22	+8.9%
Havas (EUR)	18.45	18.70	+1.4%

WPP

WPP recorded by far the largest gain of the week, with its share price rising 16%, outperforming the broader market. The company benefited from the interim World Creative Rankings by The Drum, in which WPP retained first place in the Holding Company rankings, while its agency networks Ogilvy and VML ranked first and second in the Network rankings.

WPP Media also strengthened its position in India through an alliance with Kily, an AI startup founded by former Flipkart and Affle employees. Kily's AI agents autonomously manage marketplace listing management, price optimisation and advertising, and will be integrated into WPP Open, the group's agentic marketing platform.

Publicis Groupe

Publicis gained 9% following a productive week on the client front. Cathay renewed its global partnership with the group for another three years after a strategic review that began in November 2025. The agreement covers integrated creative and media services for the airline's travel, cargo and lifestyle businesses.

At the same time, Publicis' proposed acquisition of data platform LiveRamp came under review by Australia's competition regulator, the ACCC, which is collecting public submissions until 4 August due to potential overlaps with the data services Publicis already provides in Australia through Epsilon and Lotame.

S4 Capital

S4 Capital was the week's second-best performer, rising more than 11%. The company brought forward the publication of its half-year results to early August.

Operationally, subsidiary Monks showcased an AI project for Watts Law Firm, developing an intelligent platform for qualifying legal cases as part of the firm's broader AI transformation.

Dentsu Group

Dentsu gained 4.5% after announcing developments across several markets. The group entered into a partnership with Adthena focused on advertising in ChatGPT and will oversee the commercial growth of the Volleyball Nations League in Japan.

In India, Dentsu Creative Isobar won Canon's digital and e-commerce account for its Imaging Consumer Business, managed from Mumbai and Gurgaon. Dentsu Studios also expanded its footprint by opening a new office in the Philippines.

Omnicom Group

Omnicom rose nearly 9% ahead of its second-quarter earnings announcement, released on 28 July, with analysts suggesting beforehand that the stock could be undervalued by as much as 20%.

Following its acquisition of IPG, Omnicom continued its integration efforts by merging media agencies Mediahub and Hearts & Science into a single entity under a new name, led by Omnicom Media CEO Florian Adamski. The move is designed to minimise client conflicts. The company has already eliminated 7,200 positions and expects similar workforce reductions through 2027.

Havas

Havas ended the week with a modest gain of just over 1%, supported by its own financial results. The group reported 2.5% organic growth for the first half of the year, improved its adjusted EBIT margin, and reaffirmed its full-year guidance. North America delivered growth, while China lagged behind, and India was among the company's strongest-performing markets.

Havas also expanded through Havas Play's acquisition of Dutch agency Sportvibes, Arena Media renewed the Dr. Martens account, and the group continued its ongoing share buyback programme.

This overview is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice or a recommendation.

Follow Marketing Report on LinkedIn