The Trade Desk, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTD) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

The Trade Desk, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTD) was the target of a large increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 13,640,000 shares, an increase of 32.8% from the January 31st total of 10,270,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,880,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days.

Trade Desk Stock Performance

Shares of Trade Desk stock opened at $67.17 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 86.12, a PEG ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 1.45. Trade Desk has a fifty-two week low of $66.82 and a fifty-two week high of $141.53. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $109.60 and a 200 day moving average of $114.47.

Trade Desk (NASDAQ:TTD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The technology company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.21). Trade Desk had a return on equity of 16.38% and a net margin of 16.08%. Analysts forecast that Trade Desk will post 1.06 EPS for the current year.

Trade Desk declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $564.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the technology company to purchase up to 0.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on TTD shares. Macquarie upped their price target on Trade Desk from $133.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price target on shares of Trade Desk in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Evercore ISI cut Trade Desk from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $90.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on Trade Desk from $115.00 to $100.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Trade Desk from $144.00 to $122.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Trade Desk currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $119.45.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jeffrey Terry Green sold 18,207 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.44, for a total value of $2,283,886.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 704,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $88,338,485.76. The trade was a 2.52 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jay R. Grant sold 18,524 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.35, for a total value of $2,210,839.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 169,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,225,528.40. This trade represents a 9.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 41,029 shares of company stock valued at $5,004,296 in the last quarter. 9.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TTD. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in Trade Desk during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Trade Desk during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Trade Desk by 68.8% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 287 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Trade Desk during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Trade Desk during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. 67.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Trade Desk

The Trade Desk, Inc operates as a technology company in the United States and internationally. The company offers a self-service cloud-based platform that allows buyers to plan, manage, optimize, and measure data-driven digital advertising campaigns across various ad formats and channels, including video, display, audio, digital-out-of-home, native, and social on various devices, such as computers, mobile devices, televisions, and streaming devices.