Trade Desk (TTD) Q2 FY2026: Revenue +3%, Operating Income -13% — Q3 Guidance of $650M Sends Shares Down 21–24%

Trade Desk posted Q2 FY2026 revenue of $715.1 million, up 3.0% year over year, missing the Zacks consensus of $751.6 million by 4.9%. Operating income fell 13.0% to $101.6 million. Net income dropped 28.6% to $64.4 million. Non-GAAP diluted EPS came in at $0.34, 17.1% below the consensus of $0.41. Adjusted EBITDA was $241.0 million, representing a 34% margin.

What moved the stock was not the Q2 print but the Q3 guidance. The company guided Q3 revenue to "at least $650 million" and adjusted EBITDA to approximately $160 million. That guidance floor is approximately 19% below the Street's estimate of roughly $805 million and implies approximately 12% year-over-year revenue contraction versus the prior-year quarter. Shares fell 21–24% on the day of the announcement and are down roughly 76% over the past twelve months.

The accounting driver of the margin decline is a 22.1% surge in platform operations costs, which widened as a percentage of revenue from 21.8% to 25.8% — a 4.0 percentage-point deterioration in operating leverage. The sharper drop in net income reflects a simultaneous collapse in net interest income and a spike in the effective tax rate. The balance sheet itself remains solid: first-half free cash flow of $419.4 million, zero financial debt, and a revolving credit facility expanded from $450 million to $750 million.