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it would be worth today
$456.54
−$543.46 loss0.46x-11.0% a year
The same $1,000 in an S&P 500 index fund: $2,626
No tax on a loss. Selling can offset tax on other gains.
Growth Over Time
Performance Metrics
Total Invested
$1,000.00
Current Value
$456.54
Total Loss
−$543.46
Multiplier
0.46x
CAGR
-11.0%
Max Drawdown
-90.4%
Inflation-Adjusted
$362.43
Benchmark Comparison
How does $1,000.00 invested in 2020 compare across different asset classes?
| Asset | Value Today | Return |
|---|---|---|
| The Trade Desk | $456.54 | 0.46x |
| S&P 500 | $2,626.14 | 2.63x |
| Gold | $2,769.41 | 2.77x |
| Savings (2% APY) | $1,142.91 | 1.14x |
Dividends
The Trade Desk paid no dividends over this period, so the whole return came from its share price.
Dividends from Yahoo Finance. Shares today assume every dividend was reinvested.
Back in 2020
- In December 2020, The Trade Desk's stockholders approved proposals setting a latest termination date for its dual-class share structure, along with other governance changes. sec.gov
- In 2020, a gallon of gas averaged $2.17 and the new iPhone 12 Pro started at $999. eia.govapple.com
- During 2020 itself, The Trade Desk rose 185%, #13 of the 103 investments we track. The best was Tesla (+747%); the worst was AMC Entertainment (−73%). Full 2020 results →
$1,000 in The Trade Desk, year by year
Of the 103 investments we track that were available at the start of 2020, The Trade Desk ranks #99 by growth to today, in the bottom quarter — just behind PayPal and ahead of Lululemon. See the full 2020 ranking →
The Trade Desk started 2020 at its highest start-of-year price up to then, after rising 134% in 2019. It's worth less than the $1,000 put in today; the last January it was above that was 2026. Its best January was 2025, at $4,336. Today it's 89% below that, so selling then would have beaten holding. It rose in 4 of the 6 full years since. It fell behind the same $1,000 in the S&P 500 at the start of 2026 and hasn't caught up. Month by month, the deepest fall ran from Nov 2024 ($4,746) to today ($456.54), a drop of 90%. At its lowest month-end, in Aug 2026, it was worth $506.57.
| When | Worth | Change | S&P 500 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start of 2020 | $1,000 | — | $1,000 |
| Start of 2021 | $2,849 | +185% | $1,184 |
| Start of 2022 | $3,319 | +17% | $1,524 |
| Start of 2023 | $1,621 | −51% | $1,248 |
| Start of 2024 | $2,600 | +60% | $1,576 |
| Start of 2025 | $4,336 | +67% | $1,970 |
| Start of 2026 | $1,388 | −68% | $2,322 |
| Today | $457 | −67% | $2,626 |
Values at the start of each year (first trading day for stocks). The S&P 500 column includes reinvested dividends, like the stock values.
Historical Context
At the start of 2020, The Trade Desk was priced at $27.15 (adjusted for later splits and dividends). $1,000 would have bought about 36.83 shares. The Trade Desk runs a platform advertisers use to buy digital ads. It went public in September 2016.
Measured from one January to the next, The Trade Desk's best year since then was 2020 (+185%) and its worst was 2025 (−68%). Holding on wasn't easy: between the start of 2025 and the start of 2026, the position fell 68% from its high.
Frequently Asked Questions
A $1,000 investment in The Trade Desk at the start of 2020 would be worth approximately $456.54 today — a 0.46x return ($543.46 loss) over 6.7 years.
Methodology & Sources
Price data: Historical prices are the closing price on the first trading day of each year, adjusted for splits and dividends (so returns assume dividends were reinvested), from Yahoo Finance and MacroTrends. Current prices come from Yahoo Finance and refresh hourly; if that source is unavailable, the last saved price is used.
Calculation: Assumes a single purchase at the start of 2020 (or the first trading day, for companies that listed that year), held until today. No transaction fees, taxes, or slippage are included.
Benchmarks: The S&P 500 comparison uses the S&P 500 Total Return index (dividends reinvested, like an index fund) at the start of2020 and today. Gold uses the price per troy ounce. Savings account assumes a 2% APY compounded annually.
Inflation adjustment: Uses U.S. CPI-U annual averages from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 2026 CPI value is estimated.
Educational purposes only. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Not financial advice.
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$1,000 in The Trade Desk, by year
$1,000 in The Trade Desk:1 year ago5 years ago10 years ago