The Trade Desk joins S&P 500 following strong programmatic growth

The Trade Desk Inc. (NASDAQ: TTD) will join the S&P 500 index effective July 18, 2025, replacing ANSYS Inc. (NASDAQ: ANSS), according to an announcement from S&P Dow Jones Indices on July 14, 2025. The addition follows Synopsys Inc.'s acquisition of ANSYS, which was completed on July 17.

The company's stock price jumped nearly 9% following the announcement, reaching $80.40 per share. This represented a significant recovery from the stock's low point of $46.34 earlier in 2025, when shares declined sharply after the company's first earnings miss in 33 consecutive quarters during its Q4 2024 report in February.

Summary

Who: The Trade Desk Inc. (NASDAQ: TTD), a demand-side platform for programmatic advertising, founded by CEO Jeff Green 16 years ago and publicly traded since 2016.

What: The company joined the S&P 500 stock index, replacing ANSYS Inc. following its acquisition by Synopsys. The inclusion marks the first independent advertising technology company to achieve S&P 500 status in approximately 20 years.

When: The announcement was made on July 14, 2025, with the index change effective July 18, 2025. The company's stock gained nearly 9% following the announcement.

Where: The Trade Desk, headquartered in Ventura, California, operates globally with offices across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific regions serving international advertisers.

Why: The inclusion reflects The Trade Desk's sustained financial performance, including $2.4 billion in 2024 revenue and $12 billion in platform spend. The company met S&P 500 requirements for market capitalization, revenue growth, and trading volume while maintaining independence in the consolidating advertising technology sector.

For the programmatic advertising industry, The Trade Desk's inclusion marks a historic milestone. According to industry analysis, no other independent, publicly traded advertising technology company has achieved S&P 500 status in the past two decades. Most notable names in ad tech history have either been acquired by larger technology companies or failed to reach the growth thresholds required for inclusion in the index.

The decision reflects The Trade Desk's sustained financial performance and market position. In 2024, the company reported $2.4 billion in revenue, representing a 26% year-over-year increase. Platform spend reached $12 billion, demonstrating the scale of advertiser investment flowing through its demand-side platform. Fourth-quarter 2024 revenue hit $741 million, showing a 22% increase from the previous year despite missing guidance expectations.

CEO Jeff Green acknowledged the achievement through a LinkedIn post on July 15, stating "When we founded The Trade Desk 16 years ago, and when we went public 9 years ago, I didn't dare dream that we would be an S&P 500 component." He attributed the success to "the incredible work and innovation of every TTDer present and past" and emphasized the company's relationships with clients and partners who "stuck with us and trusted us and saw the value of programmatic and the value of objectivity."

The Trade Desk's business model centers on providing advertisers with technology to purchase digital advertising inventory across multiple channels including connected TV, display, mobile, and audio. The company operates as an independent platform, positioning itself as an alternative to advertising solutions offered by major technology companies like Google and Amazon.

Connected TV represents the company's largest and fastest-growing channel segment. During recent earnings calls, Green emphasized that "CTV is our largest and fastest growing channel and will be for the foreseeable future." This focus aligns with broader industry trends as traditional television consumption shifts toward streaming platforms.

The announcement comes during a period of strategic transformation for The Trade Desk. In December 2024, the company implemented what Green described as "the largest reorganization in company history." The restructuring included streamlining client-facing teams and reorganizing engineering operations into 100 scrum teams. The company outlined a comprehensive 15-point strategic plan focused on scaling operations and accelerating its transition to the Kokai platform.

The Kokai platform, launched in June 2023, represents The Trade Desk's next-generation advertising technology incorporating artificial intelligence capabilities. The company expects to complete the transition of all clients from its previous Solimar platform to Kokai during 2025. This technological advancement supports the company's positioning in an increasingly competitive programmatic advertising landscape.

For the marketing community, The Trade Desk's S&P 500 inclusion validates the programmatic advertising sector's maturation. The company's independent status distinguishes it from competitors integrated within larger technology ecosystems. This positioning has attracted advertisers seeking alternatives to platforms offered by major technology companies, particularly as privacy regulations and industry changes affect traditional advertising approaches.

The Trade Desk's growth trajectory reflects broader programmatic advertising adoption. Industry data indicates that 72% of marketers plan to increase programmatic advertising investment in 2025, according to recent market research. Connected TV spending is projected to double from 14% of media budgets in 2023 to 28% in 2025, directly benefiting platforms like The Trade Desk that facilitate programmatic CTV purchases.

The company's financial metrics demonstrate scale and stability required for S&P 500 inclusion. Market capitalization, revenue growth, and trading volume all meet the index's requirements. The inclusion will likely increase institutional investment in The Trade Desk shares, as many funds track the S&P 500 index composition.

Industry observers note the significance of an independent advertising technology company achieving this milestone. The programmatic advertising sector has historically been characterized by acquisitions and consolidation, with many companies absorbed by larger technology firms. The Trade Desk's ability to maintain independence while scaling to S&P 500 status suggests a viable path for specialized advertising technology platforms.

The announcement occurred alongside broader industry developments affecting programmatic advertising. Privacy-focused initiatives, including The Trade Desk's unified ID 2.0 solution, address challenges posed by third-party cookie deprecation. The company's investments in identity solutions position it to navigate evolving privacy regulations while maintaining advertising effectiveness.

Recent partnerships and product developments support The Trade Desk's growth strategy. The company has expanded its creative marketplace through integrations with AI-powered content creation platforms. These developments address advertiser demand for more sophisticated creative optimization capabilities within programmatic campaigns.

The Trade Desk's global expansion efforts complement its technological investments. The company maintains offices across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific regions, serving advertisers in diverse geographic markets. This international presence supports growth as programmatic advertising adoption increases globally.

For Q1 2025, The Trade Desk projected revenue of at least $575 million, representing 17% year-over-year growth. These projections reflect the company's confidence in sustained demand for programmatic advertising solutions despite broader economic uncertainties affecting digital marketing spending.

The company's approach to transparency and measurement distinguishes it in the programmatic advertising ecosystem. Recent initiatives include OpenSincera, a free tool providing industry-wide visibility into digital advertising performance metrics. This commitment to transparency addresses advertiser concerns about programmatic advertising quality and effectiveness.

The Trade Desk's S&P 500 inclusion represents validation of the programmatic advertising model's long-term viability. The company's sustained growth demonstrates that independent platforms can compete effectively against integrated solutions offered by major technology companies. This success may encourage other advertising technology companies to pursue similar growth strategies.

Industry analysis suggests The Trade Desk's inclusion reflects broader acceptance of digital advertising as a mature sector worthy of institutional investment. The company's financial performance and market position indicate that programmatic advertising has moved beyond early-stage technology adoption to become a fundamental component of digital marketing strategies.

The announcement comes as The Trade Desk faces competitive pressure from major technology companies expanding their advertising offerings. Amazon's advertising business and Google's continued dominance in digital advertising create ongoing challenges for independent platforms. However, The Trade Desk's S&P 500 inclusion demonstrates its ability to maintain growth despite these competitive pressures.

Looking ahead, The Trade Desk's performance within the S&P 500 will serve as a barometer for the programmatic advertising sector's health. The company's ability to maintain growth while navigating industry changes will influence investor confidence in advertising technology investments. The inclusion marks a significant milestone for both The Trade Desk and the broader programmatic advertising industry.

Key terms explained

Programmatic advertising: An automated method of buying and selling digital advertising inventory in real-time through technological platforms. This process eliminates the need for manual negotiations between advertisers and publishers, instead using algorithms and data to determine the most effective ad placements. Programmatic advertising enables precise targeting, real-time optimization, and efficient budget allocation across multiple channels simultaneously.

Demand-side platform (DSP): A technology platform that enables advertisers and agencies to purchase digital advertising inventory from multiple sources through a single interface. DSPs provide tools for campaign management, audience targeting, bid optimization, and performance measurement. They connect to various supply-side platforms and ad exchanges to access available inventory across different media channels.

Connected TV (CTV): Television content delivered through internet-connected devices rather than traditional cable or broadcast signals. CTV includes streaming services, smart TVs, gaming consoles, and over-the-top platforms. This format allows for more sophisticated audience targeting and measurement capabilities compared to traditional television advertising.

Supply-side platform (SSP): Technology that enables publishers to manage and sell their digital advertising inventory programmatically. SSPs connect publishers to multiple demand sources, including DSPs and ad exchanges, to maximize revenue through automated auctions. They provide tools for inventory management, yield optimization, and revenue reporting.

Third-party cookie deprecation: The gradual elimination of tracking cookies that collect user data across different websites for advertising purposes. Major browsers are removing support for these cookies due to privacy concerns, forcing the advertising industry to develop alternative methods for audience targeting and measurement.

Unified ID 2.0 (UID2): An identity solution developed by The Trade Desk that provides privacy-focused audience targeting capabilities. UID2 enables advertisers to reach specific audiences without relying on third-party cookies, using encrypted email addresses and other privacy-compliant identifiers. This solution aims to balance advertising effectiveness with user privacy requirements.

Real-time bidding (RTB): An auction-based system where advertising inventory is bought and sold in real-time as web pages load. When a user visits a website, an auction occurs within milliseconds to determine which advertiser's ad will be displayed. Bidding decisions are made automatically based on user data, campaign parameters, and bid strategies.

Kokai platform: The Trade Desk's next-generation advertising technology platform that incorporates artificial intelligence capabilities for campaign optimization. Kokai replaced the company's previous Solimar platform and includes advanced features for audience targeting, creative optimization, and performance measurement across multiple advertising channels.

Inventory monetization: The process by which publishers generate revenue from their digital content through advertising placements. This involves optimizing ad formats, placement strategies, and pricing models to maximize revenue while maintaining user experience. Effective inventory monetization requires balancing advertiser demand with audience engagement.

Cross-device measurement: The ability to track and attribute advertising performance across multiple devices used by the same individual. This measurement approach provides a more complete view of customer journeys and advertising effectiveness, enabling better optimization of campaigns and budget allocation across different touchpoints.

Timeline

• July 14, 2025: S&P Dow Jones Indices announces The Trade Desk will join S&P 500 index
• July 17, 2025: Synopsys completes acquisition of ANSYS, creating opening in S&P 500
• July 18, 2025: The Trade Desk officially joins S&P 500, replacing ANSYS
• June 17, 2025: Trade Desk expands AI creative marketplace with Rembrand partnership
• June 9, 2025: Trade Desk launches Deal Desk to manage advertising deals
• May 14, 2025: The Trade Desk launches OpenSincera for greater ad transparency
• April 29, 2025: The Trade Desk integrates Bunny Studio for audio ad creatio
• February 21, 2025: Trade Desk's strategic shift raises questions about agency relationships
• February 14, 2025: The Trade Desk undergoes major strategic shift after first earnings miss in 8 years