WPP WPP PLC

By Nick Kostov

WPP PLC (WPP.LN) said revenue growth slowed in the second half of last year as clients spent less in the U.S. and U.K.

The world's largest advertising company also forecast slower growth for 2017, reflecting fewer new business wins in recent months and what it called a "tepid" macroeconomic environment.

Like-for-like net sales--a measure used to judge the company's underlying performance--rose 3.1% last year, in line with analysts' expectations but reflecting a drop off in the second half. WPP said that particularly strong sales growth in the same period a year earlier made the latest figures look weaker.

The U.K.-based company, whose agencies include Mindshare and JWT, said on Friday that net profit rose 21% last year to 1.4 billion pounds ($1.72 billion). Revenue rose 18% to GBP14.39 billion.

Run by Chief Executive Martin Sorrell, WPP has expanded its digital operations and made acquisitions to outpace rivals like Omnicom Group Inc. and Publicis Groupe SA as spending for ads in traditional media has slowed in recent years.

The group had a relatively slow start to the year, with January like-for-like net sales up 1.2% from the same period last year. WPP said it is budgeting for around 2% growth in both revenue and net sales for 2017.

The group raised its dividend to 56.6 pence from 44.69 pence.

-Write to Nick Kostov at nick.kostov@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 03, 2017 02:25 ET (07:25 GMT)

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