After a massive four-day streak of big gains, the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC 0.26%) was due for a break. But after having opened significantly lower, the Nasdaq reclaimed all the ground it had lost and was actually very slightly higher as of 2:30 p.m. EST on Friday.
With market participants focusing most of their attention on the vote counting in the presidential election, a lot of people didn't happen to notice some of the biggest moves higher among individual stocks in the market. In particular, The Trade Desk (TTD +6.83%) and Roku (ROKU +2.19%) stood out among Nasdaq-listed companies, as their earnings reports boded well for the fundamental prospects of their respective businesses -- and rewarded their shareholders with nice gains.
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The Trade Desk blows investors away
The Trade Desk saw its stock soar 27% on Friday afternoon. The programmatic advertising specialist had third-quarter financial results that were far better than most of those following the stock had anticipated.
The Trade Desk set a new record for quarterly revenue, which rose 32% from year-ago levels. Net income more than doubled, and even after accounting for extraordinary items, adjusted earnings per share jumped almost 70% year over year.
Key areas played in The Trade Desk's favor. The ad specialist has concentrated on connected TV as a medium for advertising growth, and ad spending in that arena roughly doubled from year-ago levels. Similarly impressive results came from advertising via mobile video and through audio channels.
Moreover, The Trade Desk gave positive feedback about its expectations for the remainder of the year. With the company anticipating a rise of around 34% in the fourth quarter of 2020 compared to last year's fourth quarter, it's clear that the companies that pulled back on marketing expenditures during the early part of the coronavirus pandemic are back in full force right now.
Roku lights up the screen
Elsewhere, Roku's share price climbed 12%. The streaming television company delivered extremely strong results in its third quarter as well, and that helped give investors more confidence about Roku's ability to grow through the end of 2020 and beyond.
Roku's fundamentals looked extremely good. Revenue climbed 73% from year-ago levels, as the company added 2.9 million new active accounts to hit the 46 million mark. The number of hours of content that viewers streamed on the Roku platform rose by about 200 million to 14.8 billion hours.
Moreover, Roku is doing a great job of monetizing the content it delivers. Average revenue per user was higher by 20% year over year, hitting $27 per user. The company also did well in getting a good mix of sales, with revenue sources both from the platform itself and from Roku's players. Player unit sales were up 57% from the year-ago period, and its retail partners reported plenty of demand for hardware.
The company warned that the immediate future looks uncertain, with the coronavirus crisis continuing and other pressures taking away from confidence. Yet Roku still thinks that revenue growth for the fourth quarter will probably be in the mid-40% range. With strong profit margins, it's hoping that the holiday shopping season will bring new confidence to shoppers despite the difficulties from the pandemic.
Both Roku and The Trade Desk are tech stocks that have found new ways of doing old things. Even after their big gains, both deserve attention as their businesses continue to develop and grow.
