Rosenblatt has trimmed its price target for The Trade Desk (NASDAQ:TTD) to $53.00 from $64.00, while continuing to rate the ad tech company a Buy, after the firm disclosed an unexpected change in its finance leadership.
The move comes in the wake of the surprise announcement that CFO Alexander Kayyal was leaving the company. Rosenblatt noted Kayyal had held the finance chief role for only five months.
Despite the change at the top of the finance organization, The Trade Desk maintained its fourth-quarter 2025 financial guidance. The company expects revenue of at least $840 million - a year-over-year increase of about 13% (and 19% excluding political advertising) - and adjusted EBITDA of approximately $375 million, representing roughly a 7% rise and an adjusted-EBITDA margin near 45%.
Rosenblatt said its lower price target reflects a reduced premium relative to growth. The firm now applies an 18x enterprise-value-to-2026 estimated adjusted-EBITDA multiple, down from the prior 22x multiple. Rosenblatt argued that surprising personnel volatility in a key financial role weakens the case for a valuation premium to growth.
The firm nonetheless emphasized that it still anticipates healthy growth at The Trade Desk and said the new price target implies more than 50% upside from current levels, with the company slated to report fourth-quarter results on February 25, 2026, after the market close.
Management also announced the appointment of Tahnil Davis as Interim Chief Financial Officer. Davis, who has been with the company for nearly 11 years, will report directly to CEO Jeff Green.
Other broker responses to the CFO departure included additional price-target reductions and at least one downgrade. Truist Securities lowered its target to $60 from $85 while keeping a Buy rating. Stifel cut its target to $74 from $90, also maintaining a Buy rating and citing concerns about potentially lackluster first-quarter guidance driven by revenue shifts. Citizens reduced its view of The Trade Desk from Market Outperform to Market Perform, pointing to rising competitive pressures in digital advertising and concerns that generative AI could reduce switching costs across demand-side platforms.
The company reiterated the same specific fourth-quarter 2025 guidance figures referenced above - at least $840 million of revenue and approximately $375 million of adjusted EBITDA - in its public commentary. Those figures equate to roughly 13% revenue growth year over year and imply a 45% adjusted-EBITDA margin.
Rosenblatt’s valuation change is explicitly tied to its choice of an 18x multiple on 2026 estimated adjusted EBITDA, down from 22x. The firm described the personnel change as materially affecting the valuation argument in the near term.
Investors will have the next major data point when The Trade Desk reports fourth-quarter results on February 25, 2026, after market close.
Impacted sectors
- Digital advertising and ad tech
- Technology and software
- Equity markets and sell-side research