Observed Signal · Feb 8, 2023 · Portfolio Update · Source: Quo Vadis News · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Positive
Quo Vadis: March 2021 Programmatic Stocks Rally
Quo Vadis Issue #1 (March 2021) surveys a fixed equal-dollar portfolio of programmatic stocks: Trade Desk, Criteo, LiveRamp, Magnite, Roku, with later inclusions of S4 Capital and PubMatic. As of March 4, 2021, the portfolio reportedly outpaced Nasdaq by about 11x since January 2018, highlighting Magnite as the largest contributor to gains (roughly 44%), with Trade Desk accounting for about 29%. The piece notes February market turbulence triggered by Google Chrome data usage changes and broader adtech sentiment. Magnite announced the acquisition of SpotX from RTL Group for $1.2 billion (RTL had acquired SpotX in 2017 for $400 million). PubMatic faced the steepest drawdown in this period (over half a billion in value decline). The article also references industry figures and firms (e.g., Ari Paparo of Beeswax; Sir Martin Sorrell; You & Mr. Jones) to frame evolving dynamics between legacy agencies, SPACs, and continued consolidation in adtech.
Portfolio-level update with notable acquisitions and market shifts within the adtech programmatic stock universe.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Quo Vadis tracks an equal-dollar programmatic stock portfolio across Trade Desk, Criteo, LiveRamp, Magnite, Roku; later adds S4 Capital and PubMatic.
- As of March 4, 2021, the portfolio reportedly beat Nasdaq by ~11x since January 2018.
- Magnite contributed ~44% of the portfolio gains; Trade Desk contributed ~29%.
- Magnite agreed to acquire SpotX from RTL Group for $1.2B; RTL had acquired SpotX in 2017 for $400M.
- Pubmatic experienced the largest drawdown in the period (over $0.5B in value).
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