Nielsen Holdings plc (NLSN) has reported 36.65 percent plunge in profit for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2016. The company has earned $159 million, or $0.44 a share in the quarter, compared with $251 million, or $0.68 a share for the same period last year.     

Revenue during the quarter went up marginally by 1.97 percent to $1,656 million from $1,624 million in the previous year period. Gross margin for the quarter contracted 19 basis points over the previous year period to 59.54 percent. Total expenses were 79.41 percent of quarterly revenues, down from 80.91 percent for the same period last year. This has led to an improvement of 150 basis points in operating margin to 20.59 percent.

Operating income for the quarter was $341 million, compared with $310 million in the previous year period.

However, the adjusted EBITDA for the quarter stood at $548 million compared with $531 million in the prior year period. At the same time, adjusted EBITDA margin improved 39 basis points in the quarter to 33.09 percent from 32.70 percent in the last year period.  

"While 2016 was a challenging year, our results reflect the resiliency of our business. We remain focused on our key strategic initiatives and we continue to drive productivity and efficiency in our operations," said Mitch Barns, chief executive officer of Nielsen.

For fiscal year 2017, Nielsen Holdings forecasts revenue to grow in the range of 5 percent to 6 percent.  The company expects diluted earnings per share to be in the range of $1.40 to $1.46.