Trade Desk Revenue Reaches $736 Million; Shares Rise 3.28% in November 10 Session
Key Facts
Trade Desk reported on November 9 results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2026, posting revenue of $736 million, which Motley Fool coverage said exceeded analysts’ estimates. But revenue fell 0.5% from $739 million in the same period of 2025, putting the estimate beat in the context of a slight year-over-year decline. In the November 10 session, the stock closed at $15.42, up 3.28% after reversing an initial decline during trading. The company had announced its results the previous day, when the stock rose 15.47% to $14.93 in regular trading, according to Investing.com. The following session’s performance combined a rebound in the stock with results showing declines in several profitability measures year over year.
Net income under generally accepted accounting principles was $38 million, compared with $116 million a year earlier, while diluted earnings per share fell to $0.08 from $0.23. The company also posted adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $266 million, with a margin of 36%, versus $317 million and a margin of 43% in the third quarter of 2025. Chief Executive Jeff Green said the results came in "well above our expectations coming into the quarter," but added that the company "continues to operate below the level of growth that we expect of ourselves." Green’s remarks place the beat against internal expectations alongside the growth gap he said the company is still seeking to close. For the nine months ended September 30, revenue totaled $2.14 billion, up 4% from $2.049 billion in the same period a year earlier.
The company said its customer retention rate exceeded 95% in the third quarter and had remained above that level for more than a decade. UBS, meanwhile, said about 3 percentage points of quarterly revenue came from a one-time benefit, and political advertising added about 5 percentage points. The company said political advertisers were among the factors affecting the comparison, while UBS said the loss of advertising budgets appeared to be slowing after excluding the effects of the benefit and political advertising. This reading provided additional context for the quarterly figures, without the company formally attributing the revenue beat to strong demand. The results therefore presented a mixed picture of high customer retention, declines in profitability measures and pressure on revenue growth.
In a capital-allocation move, the board approved on November 9 a $731 million increase in its share repurchase authorization. The company had about $269 million available for that purpose as of September 30, bringing total available capacity to $1 billion after the approval. UBS on November 10 raised its price target on the stock to $19 from $15, while maintaining its Buy rating. It also increased its estimates for the company’s revenue in 2027 and 2028 by 3% and 6%, respectively. A report on UBS linked the revisions to a slowdown in the loss of advertising budgets, based on the firm’s reading after excluding the exceptional and political effects.
For the fourth quarter of 2026, Trade Desk forecast revenue of at least $755 million and adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of at least $280 million. It also said Netflix advertisers would be able, starting in November, to use first- and third-party data to target audiences through the Kokai platform, with in-platform measurement capabilities to follow. The company also announced Kokai Zuma, the latest release of Kokai, with agentic AI capabilities and a more user-friendly interface, according to its statement. It said the update focuses on accelerating advertisers’ work and improving campaign results. These initiatives and guidance will be among the key features of the coming quarter announced by the company, alongside its continued implementation of the expanded repurchase authorization.