S4 shares surge on revenue outlook despite Iran war

(Sharecast News) - Shares in S4 Capital surged by a 26% on Tuesday after the advertising group reported better-than-expected earnings and said revenues this year would be in line with forecasts despite a hit from the Iran war in the first quarter. The company said like-for-like net revenue this year would be in line analyst consensus estimates. First-quarter net revenue would be lower as clients pulled ads due to the conflict.

Operational core earnings fell 7.5% to £81.2m, beating the firm's own guidance of £75m. Net revenue for the 12 months to December was down 10.8% to £673m.

"We expect clients to remain cautious in the near term, reflecting heightened macroeconomic uncertainty as a result of the conflict in the Middle East. This challenging environment results in more measured decision-making, particularly as technology clients continue to prioritise AI-related capital expenditure over operating expenditure, such as marketing," the company said.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com

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