Trade Desk tanks as Amazon grows: Stock plummets by 39%

The Trade Desk’s stock slumps following the departure of its CFO and growing concerns that Amazon’s expanding digital ad business is threatening its market position.

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Trade Desk tanks as Amazon grows: Stock plummets by 39%

The Trade Desk’s share fell by nearly 39% on Friday last week, marking its worst single-day decline ever.

This comes after the company published its Q2 2025 earnings report showing a $694m in revenue – a 19% year-on-year (YoY) increase that slightly exceeded analysts’ estimates of $685m.

Adjusted earnings per share were 41 cents, beating estimates by one cent. Despite exceeding expectations, investors reacted negatively to the advertising platform’s earnings.

Alongside the earnings report, chief financial officer Laura Schenkein announced she would be leaving the company. She will be replaced by Alex Kayyal, a partner at Lightspeed Ventures, which has led to some analysts expressing unease about the sudden leadership change.

However, the most significant obstacle for The Trade Desk is Amazon’s digital ad business, which continues to grow rapidly, with its Q2 2025 ad revenue up 23% YoY, up to $15.7bn, and surpassing estimates.

Amazon’s demand-side platform (DSP) in particular is unlocking access to premium ad inventory across the open internet, expanding beyond its own platforms. This move is seen as a direct challenge to Trade Desk’s core business, which focuses on selling digital ad inventory to marketers.

However, during an earnings call, The Trade Desk Founder and CEO Jeff Green said the advertising platform doesn’t really compete with Amazon.

He added that his company is focused on “advancing objectivity” in adtech, contrasting with big tech platforms like Google and Amazon that prioritise their own media properties when directing adspend.

By offering unbiased access to the premium open internet, The Trade Desk enables “more precise and cost-efficient” audience targeting, which is a value that is increasingly recognised by clients.

He said walled gardens, like Amazon, often self-measure ad performance, resulting in a lack of transparency. The Trade Desk, in comparison, partners with hundreds of retailers globally to “measure in a more objective way”, helping ensure the premium open internet gets priority in ad budgets.

Additionally, The Trade Desk plans to address inefficiencies in the open internet’s media and data supply chains.

Moving forward, The Trade Desk forecasts at least $717m in revenue for Q3, implying a slower growth rate of about 14% YoY, down from 19% in Q2 and 25% in Q1.

Green acknowledged macroeconomic pressures such as tariffs imposed by the Trump administration and inflation concerns impacting major brand adspend decisions. However, he seemed positive about the future of The Trade Desk.

Green said: “We have always prioritised helping brands find their target audience, with precision and relevance, across the breadth of the open internet. The Trade Desk empowers brands with the tools to control and own their future. And we do that by prioritising objectivity in everything we do, and with a relentless focus on driving a clean, transparent and competitive marketplace.

“I believe it’s these principles – and the performance they ultimately drive – that attract major brands to our platform. And it’s our dedication to those principles that’s keeping them here. All of these positions The Trade Desk to lead through what we believe will be another defining period of growth. We’re building right now for this next chapter, not just for this year, but for the long-term future of the open internet.”

The news story first appeared on Campaign's sister publication Performance Marketing World.

Source:

Performance Marketing World