As the Q4 earnings season comes to a close, it’s time to take stock of this quarter’s best and worst performers in the advertising software industry, including LiveRamp (NYSE: RAMP) and its peers.

The digital advertising market is large, growing, and becoming more diverse, both in terms of audiences and media. As a result, there is a growing need for software that enables advertisers to use data to automate and optimize ad placements.

The 6 advertising software stocks we track reported a satisfactory Q4. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.9% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was in line.

Luckily, advertising software stocks have performed well with share prices up 18.3% on average since the latest earnings results.

LiveRamp (NYSE: RAMP)

Serving as the digital middleman in an increasingly privacy-conscious world, LiveRamp (NYSE: RAMP) provides technology that helps companies securely share and connect their customer data with trusted partners while maintaining privacy compliance.

LiveRamp reported revenues of $212.2 million, up 8.6% year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations, but overall, it was a slower quarter for the company with revenue guidance for next quarter slightly missing analysts’ expectations and full-year revenue guidance slightly missing analysts’ expectations.

LiveRamp achieved the highest full-year guidance raise of the whole group. The company added 8 enterprise customers paying more than $1 million annually to reach a total of 140. Unsurprisingly, the stock is up 32.5% since reporting and currently trades at $29.71.

Read our full report on LiveRamp here, it’s free.

Best Q4: PubMatic (NASDAQ: PUBM)

Powering billions of daily ad impressions across the open internet, PubMatic (NASDAQ: PUBM) operates a technology platform that helps publishers maximize revenue from their digital advertising inventory while giving advertisers more control and transparency.

PubMatic reported revenues of $80.05 million, down 6.4% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 6.2%. The business had an exceptional quarter with EBITDA guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts’ expectations and an impressive beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

PubMatic achieved the biggest analyst estimates beat among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 26.4% since reporting. It currently trades at $8.94.

Is now the time to buy PubMatic? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free.

Weakest Q4: The Trade Desk (NASDAQ: TTD)

Built as an alternative to "walled garden" advertising ecosystems, The Trade Desk (NASDAQ: TTD) provides a cloud-based platform that helps advertisers and agencies plan, manage, and optimize digital advertising campaigns across multiple channels and devices.

The Trade Desk reported revenues of $846.8 million, up 14.3% year on year, exceeding analysts’ expectations by 0.6%. Still, it was a softer quarter as it posted revenue guidance for next quarter slightly missing analysts’ expectations and EBITDA guidance for next quarter missing analysts’ expectations significantly.

Interestingly, the stock is up 13% since the results and currently trades at $28.43.

Read our full analysis of The Trade Desk’s results here.

Zeta Global (NYSE: ZETA)

Powered by an AI engine that processes over one trillion consumer signals monthly, Zeta Global (NYSE: ZETA) operates a data-driven cloud platform that helps companies target, connect, and engage with consumers through personalized marketing across channels like email, social media, and video.

Zeta Global reported revenues of $394.6 million, up 25.4% year on year. This result surpassed analysts’ expectations by 3.7%. Overall, it was a very strong quarter as it also logged an impressive beat of analysts’ billings estimates and full-year guidance of accelerating revenue growth.

Zeta Global had the weakest full-year guidance update among its peers. The stock is up 11.9% since reporting and currently trades at $19.

Read our full, actionable report on Zeta Global here, it’s free.

AppLovin (NASDAQ: APP)

Sitting at the crossroads of the mobile advertising ecosystem with over 200 free-to-play games in its portfolio, AppLovin (NASDAQ: APP) provides software solutions that help mobile app developers market, monetize, and grow their apps through AI-powered advertising and analytics tools.

AppLovin reported revenues of $1.66 billion, up 65.9% year on year. This number topped analysts’ expectations by 2.2%. It was an exceptional quarter as it also put up EBITDA guidance for next quarter exceeding analysts’ expectations and a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

AppLovin scored the fastest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is up 12.7% since reporting and currently trades at $515.00.

Read our full, actionable report on AppLovin here, it’s free.

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