WPP Group H1 Pre-tax Profit Climbs, Ups Dividend - Quick Facts

(RTTNews) - Advertising giant WPP Group Plc. (WPP.L, WPPGY) Wednesday said its first-half profit before tax increased to 710 million pounds from 491 million pounds.

Headline profit before tax was 596 million pounds, while it totaled 532 million pounds in the previous year.

Earnings per share climbed to 43.0 pence from 27 pence in the prior year.

Revenue grew to 5.839 billion pounds from 5.469 billion pounds in the prior year.

Net sales advanced to 5.041 billion pounds from 4.792 billion pounds.

Further, the company reported a strong July like-for-like revenue growth of 5 percent and net sales growth of 3.7 percent like-for-like, indicating a likely stronger third quarter, as budgeted and forecast.

WPP said interim dividend stands at 15.91 pence per share, compared to 11.62 pence last year.

Looking ahead, WPP said 2015 looks to be another demanding year, although a weaker UK pound against a stronger US dollar may continue to provide some modest currency tailwind, which may be now more than offset by a stronger pound against the euro and the fast growth market currencies.

For 2015, the company sees like-for-like revenue and net sales growth of over 3 percent.