Universal Registration Document 2021

5.7 OUTLOOK

The trends described below do not constitute forecasts or profit estimates as defined by the modified European Regulation no. 809/2004 of April 29, 2004, used in application of directive 2003/71/00 of the European Parliament and Council of November 4, 2003.

The Groupe announced its 2022 outlook during its Full-Year presentation on February 3, 2022.

For the full year 2022, the Groupe announced aiming to deliver organic growth between +4% and +5%, a sequential improvement versus the two-year growth rate of 3% achieved in 2021, driven by the strength of the Groupe’s model and new business wins, in a positive environment for advertising and business transformation.

At this occasion, the Groupe announced also expecting to reach, in 2022, the same record levels achieved in 2021 for both its operating margin rate and free cash flow before change in working capital. This means an operating margin rate at c. 17.5% and free cash flow at c. euro 1.4 billion.

On April 14, 2022, Publicis published its first quarter 2022 revenue. The Groupe started the year very strongly, both financially and commercially.

While this should have led the Groupe to upgrade its expectations for 2022 organic growth, the global health situation, the evolution of the conflict in Ukraine, and the consequences of inflation for its clients created too much uncertainty to do so at this stage.

Thanks to the strength of its model, Publicis is confident in its ability to deliver on all of the 2022 targets set at its full year 2021 earnings, with organic growth now at the upper-end of its previous +4 to +5% range. This outlook takes into account a strong Q1 and an expected very solid Q2 at around +5% organic, compared to +17.1% in Q2 2021. The Groupe confirms its 2022 outlook of c. 17.5% operating margin rate and c. euro 1.4 billion of Free cash flow before change in working capital. This assumes no further major deterioration in the global health and economic environment.

Moreover, based on its strong operating and cash performance, the Groupe has set its cash allocation for 2022:

• Upgrade in the Groupe dividend policy to a 45% to 50% payout ratio versus c. 45% previously. For 2021, the Groupe will submit a euro 2.40 dividend per share (corresponding to a 47.8% payout) to the vote of its shareholders at its next AGM in May 2022.
• Removal of the share dividend option in order to stabilize the number of shares in circulation. As a consequence, the 2021 dividend will be fully paid in cash.
• Step up in the targeted acquisition strategy, allocating between euro 400-600 million, versus euro 200-300 million in 2021, to continue strengthening data and tech capabilities.
• Continued deleveraging, with an objective of c. euro 1 billion average net debt in 2022.