The Trade Desk Revenue Up, Growth Slows – Stock Plunges
The Trade Desk defies Growth Concerns with Strong Q2, Eyes amazon Partnership
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Despite a important after-hours stock drop, The Trade Desk delivered a robust Q2 2025 performance, reporting $694 million in revenue – a 19% year-over-year increase exceeding initial guidance of $682 million. While the growth rate represents a deceleration from the 27% seen in the first half of 2024, the company remains optimistic, fueled by increasing adoption of its core platform, Kokai, and a strategic outlook that positions Amazon as a potential partner rather than a direct competitor.
Q2 2025: By the Numbers
The trade Desk’s financial results paint a picture of continued, albeit moderating, growth. Key highlights include:
Revenue: $694 million (up 19% YoY)
First Half 2025 Growth: 22% YoY (compared to 27% in the same period last year)
Stock Performance: -30% drop in after-hours trading, reflecting investor reaction to slowing growth.
Kokai Adoption: Three-quarters of The Trade Desk’s clients are now utilizing Kokai, with the majority of ad spend flowing through the platform. Full client migration is expected by year-end.
The stock dip underscores Wall Street’s sensitivity to growth deceleration. Though, The Trade Desk CEO Jeff Green downplayed concerns surrounding competition, especially from Amazon, whose expanding ad business has attracted some advertiser spend. Green asserted that Amazon’s inherent conflict of interest – prioritizing its Prime Video inventory – prevents it from genuinely competing in the open internet.
“Despite their mixed messages, they are not trying to buy the open Internet objectively. They can’t. They have way too much Prime Video supply to sell to ever honestly pitch large brands to objectively buy the Open Internet,” Green stated.
A central focus for The Trade Desk remains the full rollout and optimization of Kokai. The platform’s increasing adoption – currently at 70% of client spend, according to outgoing CFO Laura Schenkein – is a key driver of efficiency and transparency for advertisers.Kokai provides a unified interface for managing campaigns across channels, offering greater control and insight into ad spend.
Leadership Changes and Strategic Partnerships
The Trade Desk is also undergoing key leadership transitions. Alex Kayyal, formerly of Lightspeed Venture Partners, will assume the role of Chief Financial officer on August 21st, succeeding Laura Schenkein. The company has also appointed Omar Tawakol, CEO of AI startup Rembrand, to its Board of Directors, signaling a commitment to innovation and leveraging artificial intelligence within its platform.
Beyond navigating competition, The Trade Desk is actively forging direct relationships with brands. The company recently signed 100 joint business plans with major advertisers, indicating a shift towards more collaborative and strategic partnerships. Furthermore, the company is seeing increased utilization of its CTV capabilities and OpenPath, its tool facilitating direct connections between advertisers and publishers.
Sector performance and Future Outlook
While overall performance was strong, certain verticals experienced underperformance. Home and garden represented 8% of The Trade Desk’s business, while style and fashion accounted for 4%, both sectors showing weaker results.
Looking ahead,green surprisingly positioned Amazon as a potential partner,particularly if the tech giant opens its Prime Video inventory to external demand. “We believe we’d be an amazing partner to drive demand to them,” he said, suggesting a collaborative future where The Trade Desk could leverage its expertise to maximize revenue for Amazon’s video platform. This outlook highlights The trade Desk’s confidence in its core capabilities and its ability to thrive within a complex and evolving advertising landscape.