Nielsen CFO: Financials 'Are Disappointing'

Nielsen Holdings plc today announced its second quarter 2018 results. The company also announced it is conducting an in-depth strategic review of Nielsen’s Buy segment. In a separate release issued today, Nielsen announced that James Attwood would assume the role of Executive Chairman of the Board and Mitch Barns, current CEO, would retire at the end of 2018.

Revenues were $1,647 million for the second quarter of 2018, up 0.2%, or down 0.7% on a constant currency basis, compared to the second quarter of 2017. Net income per share on a diluted basis was $0.20 per share in the second quarter of 2018, compared to $0.37 per share in the second quarter of 2017.

“In the second quarter, we continued to move forward on our multi-year transformations across Watch, Buy, and Operations. However, our progress was not reflected in our financial results, which are disappointing and came in below our expectations, and we are lowering our outlook for 2018,” said Jamere Jackson, Chief Financial Officer of Nielsen.

Jamere Jackson

Jackson continued, “We are addressing the challenges we face with the greatest sense of urgency and remain sharply focused on our key initiatives to drive value in the long term. Our cost reduction efforts are ahead of schedule and we are accelerating cost-out targets. In Buy Developed Markets, we saw increased pressure in the fast moving consumer goods end markets; however, we made great progress with the Connected System, retailer initiatives, and Total Consumer Measurement. In Emerging Markets, weakness in multinational client spending was offset by growth with local clients. In Watch, ongoing adoption of Total Audience Measurement continued to drive growth. However, the General Data Protection Regulation and changes in the consumer data privacy landscape impacted our growth rates in the near-term as clients and partners grapple with the changes and work to ensure compliance.”

Second Quarter Results

Net income for the second quarter of 2018 decreased 45.0% to $72 million, or 45.9% on a constant currency basis, compared to $131 million in the second quarter of 2017, as a result of softer revenues, higher restructuring charges, retailer investments, and other growth initiatives. Net income per share on a diluted basis was $0.20 per share, compared to $0.37 per share in the second quarter of 2017. During the second quarter of 2018, the company recorded restructuring charges of $65 million, or $0.12 per share. The restructuring charges reflect our continuing efforts to rightsize the business, the current market realities, and acceleration of our cost-out initiatives.

Click Here to see SEC filings.

Adjusted EBITDA for the second quarter of 2018 decreased 8.1% to $468 million, or 8.2% on a constant currency basis, compared to the second quarter of 2017. Adjusted EBITDA margins contracted 254 basis points to 28.4%, or 232 basis points on a constant currency basis, due to softer revenue and continued investments in our Buy and Watch segments, partly offset by productivity initiatives.