Why did The Trade Desk stock soar today? Execution against a tough backdrop
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Stock in ad-tech name The Trade Desk (NASDAQ:TTD) vaulted 33% Wednesday, for its best gain since a similar 36% jump in mid-August, and it reached its highest point since September.
August's jump was started by its second-quarter earnings, where revenues beat forecasts and the company benefited from a strong outlook.
Similarly, Wednesday's sharp gain was spurred by an earnings report where the company topped profit expectations in a tough time for the ad business and launched a $700M share buyback to return capital.
It was a "solid quarter" in what is still a challenging environment, RBC Capital markets said in reaction.
Evercore ISI analyst Shweta Khajuria noted it was a modest beat-and-raise, but the strength came from ongoing share gains and successful execution: Revenue growth of 24% compared very favorably to other digital advertising comparables who are seeing revenues fall by 2-9% year-over-year.
"TTD continues to execute well ... despite the current macro backdrop, largely due to healthy growth in [connected TV], mix-shift of ad dollars to programmatic, and healthy traction with Shopper Marketing," Khajuria said. "The company is also well diversified across verticals and generates very healthy [free cash flow]," Khajuria added.
"In tough macro environments, good management teams focus on things they can control â cost management, adding value to customers, and strategic investments for long-term profitable growth, and we believe TTD is doing just that and more," Khajuria said.