TipRanks
Trade Desk (TTD)
NASDAQ:TTD
Want to see TTD full AI Analyst Report?

Trade Desk (TTD) AI Stock Analysis

14,407 Followers

Top Page

TTD

Trade Desk

(NASDAQ:TTD)

Select Model
Select Model
Select Model
Neutral 69 (OpenAI - Gpt-5.6Sol)
Rating:69Neutral
Price Target:
$13.00
▼(-1.89% Downside)
Action:Reiterated
Date:09/15/26
TTD’s score is driven primarily by strong financial quality (high margins, solid profitability, low leverage, and strong free cash flow). This is tempered by cautious near-term fundamentals from the latest earnings call (slow Q2 growth and conservative Q3 guidance) and a weak longer-term technical trend (below key moving averages with negative MACD). Valuation is supportive at a ~17.8 P/E, but there is no dividend yield to bolster the profile.
Positive Factors
Strong profitability and cash generation
High margins and substantial free cash flow demonstrate an efficient, scalable software model with strong internal funding capacity. This supports continued investment in products and infrastructure while providing resilience through softer advertising conditions and flexibility for capital allocation.
Negative Factors
Slowing revenue and limited visibility
The sharp slowdown in revenue growth suggests that platform adoption and advertising budgets are currently not converting into the prior level of expansion. Limited management visibility makes it harder to assess the timing of recovery and raises the risk that weaker growth persists.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Strong profitability and cash generation
High margins and substantial free cash flow demonstrate an efficient, scalable software model with strong internal funding capacity. This supports continued investment in products and infrastructure while providing resilience through softer advertising conditions and flexibility for capital allocation.
Read all positive factors

Trade Desk Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Any
Any
Gross Spend
Gross Spend
The total advertising dollars transacted through Trade Desk’s platform, reflecting demand, client adoption, and overall platform scale. Growth in gross spend drives future revenue potential but can mask margin effects since most spend is passed on to publishers and exchanges.
Chart InsightsGross Spend has doubled since 2021 but slowed sharply in 2025—growth fell to roughly low‑teens after mid‑20s% annual gains—largely due to CPG and auto weakness management cites as shaving ~5ppt. Crucially, revenue grew faster than spend in 2025, implying better monetization per dollar driven by CTV, retail data marketplace and JBPs. Near term, conservative guidance and targeted reinvestment in AI/infrastructure cap upside, but the higher‑quality mix and product traction position Trade Desk to regain spend momentum if sector demand normalizes.
Data provided by:The Fly

Trade Desk (TTD) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)

Trade Desk Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description
The Trade Desk, Inc. is a global technology company that provides a self-service, cloud-based platform. This platform enables advertising buyers to efficiently create, manage, and optimize data-driven digital ad campaigns across diverse formats an...
How the Company Makes Money
The Trade Desk primarily makes money by charging fees tied to the amount of advertising spend that clients execute through its platform. In practice, when an agency or brand uses The Trade Desk DSP to buy programmatic ads, The Trade Desk earns rev...

Trade Desk Earnings Call Summary

Earnings Call Date:Aug 06, 2026
(Q2-2026)
|
% Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Nov 05, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Neutral
The call presented a balanced picture: meaningful strengths (solid cash generation, JBPs accelerating revenue under strategic partnerships, strong regional and CTV/audio growth, promising early results from Audience Unlimited, and a robust product/measurement roadmap plus experienced new leadership) are offset by clear near‑term challenges (Q2 revenue growth only 3% YoY, admitted execution shortcomings, rising operating expenses from infrastructure and AI investments, concentration in pressured categories like CPG and autos, and cautious Q3 guidance). Management emphasized disciplined prioritization and product initiatives to drive longer‑term recovery, but near‑term visibility remains limited.
Positive Updates
Q2 Revenue and Profitability
Reported revenue of $715 million in Q2, up 3% year‑over‑year. Adjusted EBITDA was $241 million representing a 34% margin. Adjusted net income was $158 million ($0.34 per diluted share).
Negative Updates
Revenue Growth Below Expectations
Company stated revenue growth is below its expectations; Q2 revenue only grew 3% year‑over‑year and management acknowledged underperformance driven by macro pressures and execution issues.
Read all updates
Q2-2026 Updates
Negative
Q2 Revenue and Profitability
Reported revenue of $715 million in Q2, up 3% year‑over‑year. Adjusted EBITDA was $241 million representing a 34% margin. Adjusted net income was $158 million ($0.34 per diluted share).
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
The Trade Desk guided Q3 revenue of at least $650 million and adjusted EBITDA of about $160 million (vs. Q2 revenue $715M and Q2 adjusted EBITDA $241M, a 34% margin); Q2 net income was $64M ($0.14 diluted, ~9% of revenue) and adjusted net income $158M ($0.34), with net cash from operations $154M, free cash flow $136M and ~ $1.5B in cash/cash equivalents/short‑term investments. Q2 operating expenses were $613M (up 6% YoY) and $504M ex‑stock‑based comp (up 12% YoY); the company repurchased $78M of stock in Q2 with $269M remaining authorization. Key mix and growth metrics cited: video/CTV ~low‑50s% of revenue, mobile ~high‑20s%, display ~low‑double‑digits, audio ~7% (fastest‑growing channel); U.S. ~83% of revenue, international ~17%; EMEA and APAC ~30% YTD growth, China >100% YTD; JBPs totaled 217 clients (38% YoY) with revenue under JBPs growing ~6x the overall rate. Management said visibility is limited, is not assuming meaningful near‑term improvement, and will invest with discipline in measurement, Audience Unlimited and platform usability to drive durable growth.

Trade Desk Financial Statement Overview

Summary
Strong overall fundamentals supported by high gross margin (~83%), healthy operating margin (~21%), and robust free cash flow (~$1.14B TTM). Balance sheet leverage remains low (debt-to-equity ~0.17) with improving ROE (~16%). Offsetting these strengths are a step-down in net margin (~13.6% TTM vs. ~15–16% prior) and a modest recent rise in leverage plus working-capital/timing effects implied by operating cash flow vs. revenue.
Income Statement
86
Very Positive
Balance Sheet
82
Very Positive
Cash Flow
79
Positive
BreakdownTTMDec 2025Dec 2024Dec 2023Dec 2022Dec 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue2.99B2.90B2.44B1.95B1.58B1.20B
Gross Profit2.30B2.28B1.97B1.58B1.30B974.91M
EBITDA769.60M774.54M594.79M348.41M181.79M165.28M
Net Income406.89M443.30M393.08M178.94M53.38M137.76M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets5.76B6.15B6.11B4.89B4.38B3.58B
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments1.49B1.30B1.92B1.38B1.45B958.78M
Total Debt434.11M436.33M312.21M235.89M260.96M284.60M
Total Liabilities3.19B3.67B3.16B2.72B2.27B2.05B
Stockholders Equity2.57B2.48B2.95B2.16B2.12B1.53B
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow860.39M795.71M632.39M543.30M456.85M318.54M
Operating Cash Flow1.08B992.72M739.46M598.32M548.73M378.51M
Investing Cash Flow218.44M-292.63M-157.51M-107.59M-304.37M-93.64M
Financing Cash Flow-1.07B-1.41B-107.61M-626.11M31.99M31.93M

Trade Desk Technical Analysis

Technical Analysis Sentiment
Negative
Last Price13.25
Price Trends
50DMA
13.90
Negative
100DMA
16.65
Negative
200DMA
21.97
Negative
Market Momentum
MACD
-0.63
Negative
RSI
35.11
Neutral
STOCH
55.11
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For TTD, the sentiment is Negative. The current price of 13.25 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 12.93, below the 50-day MA of 13.90, and below the 200-day MA of 21.97, indicating a bearish trend. The MACD of -0.63 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 35.11 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 55.11 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Negative sentiment for TTD.

Trade Desk Risk Analysis

Trade Desk disclosed 48 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Trade Desk reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks

Trade Desk Peers Comparison

Overall Rating
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (60)
Financial Indicators
Name
Overall Rating
Market Cap
P/E Ratio
ROE
Dividend Yield
Revenue Growth
EPS Growth
71
Outperform
$3.64B21.7218.62%―8.32%280.46%
70
Outperform
$770.73M7.809.20%―-4.24%-20.11%
69
Neutral
$5.71B14.3616.09%―11.61%0.19%
66
Neutral
$20.98B41.034.34%4.18%40.60%-83.10%
60
Neutral
$48.67B4.58-11.27%4.14%2.83%-41.78%
60
Neutral
$2.11B133.102.16%6.16%6.17%351.09%
53
Neutral
$5.51B-17.35-9.33%3.96%-2.97%-165.26%
* Communication Services Sector Average
Performance Comparison
Ticker
Company Name
Price
Change
% Change
TTD
Trade Desk
12.08
-39.20
-76.44%
STGW
Stagwell
8.65
3.60
71.29%
OMC
Omnicom Group
76.48
3.02
4.11%
WPP
WPP
25.38
3.70
17.06%
CRTO
Criteo SA
15.73
-3.92
-19.95%
MGNI
Magnite
25.40
7.90
45.14%

Trade Desk Corporate Events

Business Operations and StrategyExecutive/Board Changes
Trade Desk grants CEO major performance-based stock options
Positive
Sep 15, 2026
On September 14, 2026, the Board of The Trade Desk approved a performance-based stock option for CEO Jeff Green, enabling him to buy up to 7,000,000 shares at $14.97 if the company’s Class A stock sustains price targets between $18 and $105 ...
Business Operations and StrategyFinancial Disclosures
Trade Desk Announces Workforce Reduction Amid Strategic Realignment
Negative
Sep 4, 2026
On September 3, 2026, The Trade Desk announced an organizational realignment aimed at aligning resources with its highest-priority growth opportunities and improving operational effectiveness. The plan is designed to create a more focused, agile a...
Business Operations and StrategyExecutive/Board Changes
Trade Desk Adds AI-Focused Veteran Penry Price to Board
Positive
Jul 13, 2026
On July 7, 2026, The Trade Desk’s board of directors appointed advertising industry veteran Penry Price as a Class II director, effective July 9, 2026, expanding the board from six to seven members. Price will serve on the audit committee an...
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.

Disclaimer

This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.Date of analysis: Sep 15, 2026