The Holdco Divide: AI, M&A, and the Battle for Relevance

Q3 earnings confirmed what’s been building all year:
The ad giants are no longer moving as one.

The divide between legacy holding companies and next-gen challengers has never been wider, and this quarter, the market made it clear.

Stagwell: From Challenger to Contender

Stagwell delivered the biggest headline of the quarter: a 30% stock surge not fueled by revenue or margin expansion, but by something far more symbolic — a partnership with Palantir.

Palantir builds AI for defense and intelligence — the kind that tracks threats, not TikToks. When Mark Penn announced that Stagwell would build “the holy grail of marketing” on that same infrastructure, Wall Street lit up.

The result? The stock exploded upward, marking one of the most dramatic reactions in Stagwell’s history. Whether this partnership delivers on its promise remains to be seen, but it has repositioned Stagwell as one of the few holdcos with a credible AI story.

WPP: The Weight of Inertia

WPP’s Q3 told a different story — one of decline and diminishing patience.

Organic revenue fell nearly 6%, guidance was cut again, and client losses accelerated. New CEO Cindy Rose is emphasizing AI, simplification, and “high-performance culture,” but investors have heard that playbook before.

The result: an 18% stock collapse, wiping out nearly two decades of gains.

WPP isn’t being disrupted by AI — it’s being undone by inertia. The empire that once defined modern advertising now looks like it’s fighting for relevance in a market it used to rule.

S4 Capital: Controlled Demolition

At S4 Capital, contraction continues — net revenue down 4.4% like-for-like and headcount down 13% year-over-year.

But unlike WPP’s drift, this is deliberate. Sir Martin Sorrell’s firm is in controlled demolition mode, rebuilding around a single idea:
AI as the new production line.

Through its Monks.Flow platform, S4 is betting that automation and efficiency — not scale — will define the next decade of marketing services. Margins may stabilize next year, but top-line growth remains a question mark.

Omnicom: The Quiet Operator

While others fluctuate, Omnicom continues to execute with quiet precision.

Q3 delivered steady 2.6% organic growth, improving margins, and trademark operational discipline. But the real story is the pending IPG merger, which is expected to close this month pending EU approval.

The deal will create a new-scale player with data reach rivaling Publicis — and could reshape the competitive landscape of the entire industry.

Omnicom isn’t just managing through the cycle. It’s engineering the next one.

The Takeaway

Same industry, different playbooks.

Stagwell is building the tech stack of tomorrow.
Omnicom is scaling through precision.
WPP is talking transformation but struggling for traction.
S4 is tearing down to start again.

Different bets. Same market.
The next cycle starts here.

Watch, Subscribe, and Stay Tuned

Watch more from Numbers & Narratives on Evros Group’s YouTube channel — where Chloe Cotoulas breaks down the trends shaping modern marketing, media, and M&A.

Coming soon: our Q3 Earnings Report, featuring full analysis across platforms, holdcos, and emerging players redefining the next cycle of growth.

Follow along for data-driven insights and founder-focused perspective — only on The Pulse.