What Happened?
Shares of advertising software maker The Trade Desk (NASDAQ:TTD) jumped 3.7% in the afternoon session after an analyst at BTIG reaffirmed a 'Buy' rating and raised the price target on the stock.
BTIG analyst Clark Lampen lifted the firm's price target to $97 from $79, citing a stabilized or improved digital advertising market. The analyst noted that adoption of the company's Kokai platform, along with better representative engagement, drove market share gains for the ad-tech firm. The positive move also occurred amid a broader rally in software stocks. A weaker-than-expected jobs report increased market expectations for a Federal Reserve interest rate cut, a development that generally boosted valuations for growth sectors like technology.
After the initial pop the shares cooled down to $89.45, up 3.9% from previous close.
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What Is The Market Telling Us
The Trade Desk’s shares are very volatile and have had 23 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.
The previous big move we wrote about was 12 days ago when the stock gained 3.8% after a new trade agreement between the United States and Japan spurred a broad market rally. The positive sentiment swept across markets after it was announced the U.S. and Japan had reached a new trade deal. The agreement included a 15% tariff on Japanese goods imported into the U.S. and a commitment from Japan to invest $550 billion in the U.S. and open its markets to American cars and agricultural products. This development boosted investor confidence and contributed to a widespread rally, lifting stocks across many sectors. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 both posted gains, creating a favorable environment that likely benefited individual stocks.
The Trade Desk is down 24% since the beginning of the year, and at $89.45 per share, it is trading 35.9% below its 52-week high of $139.51 from December 2024. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of The Trade Desk’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $1,859.
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