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Trade Desk's $736M Q3 Revenues: Is a Growth Recovery Taking Shape?
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Key Takeaways
Trade Desk's Q3 revenues fell 0.5% to $736M, exceeding management's forecast of at least $650M.
Political ads and a one-time partner boost lifted revenues, while JBPs grew over 30% year over year.
APAC revenues rose 30% in nine months, while TTD expects Q4 revenues of at least $755M.
The Trade Desk (TTD - Free Report) reported revenues of $736 million in the third quarter of 2026, declining 0.5% year over year compared with 18% growth in the year-ago period. Management had projected revenues of at least $650 million.
Although revenues exceeded management's expectations, the performance raises questions about whether the revenue growth is approaching a sustainable recovery.
The better-than-expected quarterly performance was driven by strength in medical health advertising, political spending and a contribution from a strategic partner. Management disclosed that business with a strategic partner contributed approximately three percentage points to revenue growth, a benefit it does not expect to recur.
Political advertising also provided a significant boost, supported by the U.S. midterm elections. Political spending represented a mid-single-digit percentage of third-quarter business, with management expecting a slightly higher contribution in the fourth quarter. However, election-related demand is cyclical.
Apart from these factors, several underlying business indicators were also encouraging. Video, including connected TV (“CTV”), accounted for a low-50s percentage share of the company's business in the third quarter. Trade Desk added that Audio accounted for approximately 7% of the business and recorded significantly stronger year-over-year growth than any other channel.
The number of joint business plans (JBPs) increased more than 30% year over year through the third quarter, including growth exceeding 20% during the quarter. Customers operating under JBPs continued growing meaningfully faster than those under traditional MSA agreements.
International markets continued to demonstrate momentum. APAC business grew approximately 30% year over year during the first nine months of 2026, supported by 45% growth in China during the third quarter. EMEA business increased more than 20% in the first nine months.
Product innovations, including Zuma and Audience Unlimited, could further support customer engagement and improve advertising outcomes. Nevertheless, the near-term outlook remains cautious. For the fourth quarter, management expects revenues of at least $755 million compared with $846.8 million in the year-ago quarter. Pressure on consumer-packaged goods and automotive advertising, partly reflecting inflation and elevated interest rates, adds uncertainty.
Overall, improving operational execution and strong international momentum are encouraging. While temporary revenue benefits and subdued underlying demand remain concerns, the company's strategic initiatives could pave the way for a more sustainable growth recovery over time.
Recent Performance of Ad Tech Peers
Magnite (MGNI - Free Report) is a leading sell-side advertising platform. Revenues for MGNI increased 14% year over year to $204.2 million, while contribution ex-traffic acquisition costs (“TAC”) rose 20% to $201 million. Growth was driven by a 39% surge in CTV contribution ex-TAC, strong political advertising demand and expanding publisher partnerships. However, political advertising contributed approximately $12 million to total contribution ex-TAC, indicating some cyclical benefits. Looking ahead, Magnite expects 2027 top-line growth exceeding 15%, excluding political advertising, supported by continued CTV momentum.
Management added that the company recently secured a three-year extension and expansion of its partnership with LG Ad Solutions, extending exclusive ad-serving capabilities through SpringServe and introducing agentic advertising via Magnite orchestration layer buying on LG TV home screens.
Amazon’s (AMZN - Free Report) third quarter 2026 advertising revenues of $19.6 billion surged 12% year over year excluding foreign exchange movements. Management said the Prime Day shift created an 850-basis-point sequential impact on third-quarter advertising growth. The company also cited the absence of NBA games in the quarter and the change of its search engine marketing programs made in the year-ago quarter.
Amazon expects advertising growth to return to the high teens in the fourth quarter. The company is strengthening its advertising capabilities through AI-powered tools such as Ads Agent, which reduces campaign setup and targeting time.
TTD Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
Shares of TTD have surged 33.6% in the past month, while the Zacks Internet – Services industry is down 17.9%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
In terms of forward price/earnings, TTD’s shares are trading at 12.35X, lower than the Internet Services industry’s ratio of 18.46X.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TTD’s earnings for 2026 has been revised upward over the past 60 days.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
Trade Desk's $736M Q3 Revenues: Is a Growth Recovery Taking Shape?
Key Takeaways
The Trade Desk (TTD - Free Report) reported revenues of $736 million in the third quarter of 2026, declining 0.5% year over year compared with 18% growth in the year-ago period. Management had projected revenues of at least $650 million.
Although revenues exceeded management's expectations, the performance raises questions about whether the revenue growth is approaching a sustainable recovery.
The better-than-expected quarterly performance was driven by strength in medical health advertising, political spending and a contribution from a strategic partner. Management disclosed that business with a strategic partner contributed approximately three percentage points to revenue growth, a benefit it does not expect to recur.
Political advertising also provided a significant boost, supported by the U.S. midterm elections. Political spending represented a mid-single-digit percentage of third-quarter business, with management expecting a slightly higher contribution in the fourth quarter. However, election-related demand is cyclical.
Apart from these factors, several underlying business indicators were also encouraging. Video, including connected TV (“CTV”), accounted for a low-50s percentage share of the company's business in the third quarter. Trade Desk added that Audio accounted for approximately 7% of the business and recorded significantly stronger year-over-year growth than any other channel.
The Trade Desk Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
The Trade Desk price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | The Trade Desk Quote
The number of joint business plans (JBPs) increased more than 30% year over year through the third quarter, including growth exceeding 20% during the quarter. Customers operating under JBPs continued growing meaningfully faster than those under traditional MSA agreements.
International markets continued to demonstrate momentum. APAC business grew approximately 30% year over year during the first nine months of 2026, supported by 45% growth in China during the third quarter. EMEA business increased more than 20% in the first nine months.
Product innovations, including Zuma and Audience Unlimited, could further support customer engagement and improve advertising outcomes.
Nevertheless, the near-term outlook remains cautious. For the fourth quarter, management expects revenues of at least $755 million compared with $846.8 million in the year-ago quarter. Pressure on consumer-packaged goods and automotive advertising, partly reflecting inflation and elevated interest rates, adds uncertainty.
Overall, improving operational execution and strong international momentum are encouraging. While temporary revenue benefits and subdued underlying demand remain concerns, the company's strategic initiatives could pave the way for a more sustainable growth recovery over time.
Recent Performance of Ad Tech Peers
Magnite (MGNI - Free Report) is a leading sell-side advertising platform. Revenues for MGNI increased 14% year over year to $204.2 million, while contribution ex-traffic acquisition costs (“TAC”) rose 20% to $201 million. Growth was driven by a 39% surge in CTV contribution ex-TAC, strong political advertising demand and expanding publisher partnerships. However, political advertising contributed approximately $12 million to total contribution ex-TAC, indicating some cyclical benefits. Looking ahead, Magnite expects 2027 top-line growth exceeding 15%, excluding political advertising, supported by continued CTV momentum.
Management added that the company recently secured a three-year extension and expansion of its partnership with LG Ad Solutions, extending exclusive ad-serving capabilities through SpringServe and introducing agentic advertising via Magnite orchestration layer buying on LG TV home screens.
Amazon’s (AMZN - Free Report) third quarter 2026 advertising revenues of $19.6 billion surged 12% year over year excluding foreign exchange movements. Management said the Prime Day shift created an 850-basis-point sequential impact on third-quarter advertising growth. The company also cited the absence of NBA games in the quarter and the change of its search engine marketing programs made in the year-ago quarter.
Amazon expects advertising growth to return to the high teens in the fourth quarter. The company is strengthening its advertising capabilities through AI-powered tools such as Ads Agent, which reduces campaign setup and targeting time.
TTD Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
Shares of TTD have surged 33.6% in the past month, while the Zacks Internet – Services industry is down 17.9%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
In terms of forward price/earnings, TTD’s shares are trading at 12.35X, lower than the Internet Services industry’s ratio of 18.46X.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TTD’s earnings for 2026 has been revised upward over the past 60 days.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
TTD currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.