The Trade Desk Stock Surges as S&P 500 Debut Takes Place, ANSYS Exits Index Amid Acquisition

The Trade Desk Inc. (TTD) will join the S&P 500, replacing ANSYS Inc. TTD's DSP helps advertisers with data-driven ads. It aims to achieve continued revenue growth and profitability, expansion of its CTV offering, and increased global footprint. TTD's inclusion highlights the importance of ad tech in the media shift to streaming and personal content. It expects at least $682 million in revenue, a 17% year-over-year growth, and adjusted EBITDA of around $259 million. TTD competes with Amazon (AMZN) in the CTV ad market.

The Trade Desk Inc. (TTD), a leading demand-side platform (DSP) for programmatic advertising, has been added to the S&P 500 index, replacing ANSYS Inc. [1]. This move underscores the growing significance of ad tech in the media landscape, particularly as it shifts towards streaming and personalized content.

The announcement was made by S&P Dow Jones Indices on July 14, 2025, and the change will take effect on July 18, 2025 [3]. The inclusion of The Trade Desk marks a significant milestone, as it is the first independent advertising technology company to achieve S&P 500 status in approximately 20 years [3]. This milestone comes on the heels of Synopsys Inc.'s acquisition of ANSYS, which was completed on July 17, 2025 [3].

The Trade Desk's stock price surged nearly 9% following the announcement, reaching $80.40 per share [3]. This represents 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 [3]. The company's inclusion reflects its sustained financial performance, including $2.4 billion in 2024 revenue and $12 billion in platform spend [3].

The Trade Desk's business model centers on providing advertisers with technology to purchase digital advertising inventory across multiple channels, including connected TV (CTV), display, mobile, and audio. The company's inclusion in the S&P 500 highlights the importance of ad tech in the media shift to streaming and personal content. The company aims to achieve continued revenue growth and profitability, expansion of its CTV offering, and increased global footprint [2].

The Trade Desk expects at least $682 million in revenue, a 17% year-over-year growth, and adjusted EBITDA of around $259 million [2]. The company competes with Amazon (AMZN) in the CTV ad market [2]. 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" [2].

The S&P 500 index is a benchmark for the performance of the U.S. stock market, and its composition is reviewed quarterly. The index committee has some discretion in selecting new members. The inclusion of a company in the S&P 500 index has significant implications for the company, as index funds hold more than a quarter of the shares of S&P 500 components [2]. The criteria for inclusion include market capitalization thresholds, profitability, and liquidity, but the index committee also considers other factors [2].

References:
[1] https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/14/trade-desk-stock-jumps-as-ad-tech-company-replaces-ansys-in-sp-500.html
[2] https://www.ainvest.com/news/trade-desk-surges-14-500-inclusion-robinhood-misses-2507/
[3] https://ppc.land/the-trade-desk-joins-s-p-500-following-strong-programmatic-growth/