Nielsen 'Buy' Revenue Decrease Drives Third Quarter Decline

Nielsen has reported a 2.5% decline in third quarter revenues to $1.6bn, on the back of a 6.0% revenue decrease in its consumer purchase Buy segment to $755m. Overall for the group, net income decreased 34.2% to $96m, compared to $146m in the third quarter of 2017.

During the quarter, Buy Developed Markets revenues fell 2.0%, which Nielsen says was primarily driven by continued pressure in the fast moving consumer goods industry in the US. Buy Emerging Markets revenues fell 9.4%, or 2.5% on a constant currency basis, because of 'pressure' on multinational client spend and continued 'softness' in China.

However, in the media research Watch business, third quarter revenue was up 0.8% to $845m. The division's Audience Measurement of Video and Text revenues increased 4.7% due to continued client adoption of Nielsen's Total Audience Measurement system and ongoing investments, including in Gracenote. Marketing Effectiveness revenues decreased 10.1%, primarily driven by 'pressure' on clients and partners because of changes to consumer data privacy protocols. Audio revenues fell 1.6%.

Overall for the group, Adjusted EBITDA was down 9.2% to $471m, while adjusted EBITDA margins contracted 219 basis points to 29.4%, in part because of continued investments in the Buy and Watch segments. The company reiterated its earnings, revenue and adjusted EBITDA guidance for 2018. Nielsen now expects free cash flow to be between $450m and $500m; a drop from the anticipated range of $550m to $575m. Dave Anderson (pictured), Chief Financial Officer, commented: 'The leadership team remains focused on executing key growth initiatives to drive improved results. We are also making good progress on efficiency initiatives which are generating increased net productivity in 2018.'

Web site: www.nielsen.com .