In this article, we will examine the 10 Best Marketing Stocks based on the number of hedge funds holding them.
According to estimates on Statista, advertising spending across the globe should clock a growth rate of 5.4%, reaching $1.4 trillion in 2029. 80% of the total ad spend will come from digital sources in 2029 with programmatic advertising capturing 85% of the total advertising market. TV and Video Advertising will have a third of the share in 2025 and almost 40% of ad spending will take place in the US. Players like Google and Meta are expected to shape the advertising market by offering new landscapes in this sector.
Advertising ETFs have generated returns of 3.04%, 2.65% and 21.66% for 1-month, 3-month and 1-year tenors. While big tech players pose a threat, there is immense potential to tap a constantly growing advertising pie that would benefit traditional players.
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A busy urban street, its billboards showing advertisements for a variety of national and local brands.
Our Methodology
For this article we picked 10 marketing stocks trending on latest news. With each stock we have mentioned the number of hedge fund investors. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
10. National CineMedia Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 16
National CineMedia Inc. (NASDAQ:NCMI) is one of the largest cinema advertising platforms in the US covering more than 18,000 screens across 1,400 theaters. Even though the third quarter revenue decreased by 10% y-o-y, it managed to exceed the guidance level of $56-58 million by bringing in sales worth $62.4 million. Another key feature of its quarterly performance is the 68% reduction in its total operating costs compared to the previous year.
The management believes that NCMI will be able to maintain its pricing in 2025, with events like Taylor Swift’s concert movie and communal experiences driving growth. The attendance level is expected to be higher compared to Q3 and there is a plan to launch new ad packages in premium formats to improve a compressing margin. The newly launched platforms like Boomerang and Boost should also be game changers with post-theater engagement increasing by more than 20%. The 10-fold increase in revenue from the technology sector in Q3 is also a positive sign, paving the way for newer deals in 2025.
9. QuinStreet Inc. (NASDAQ:QNST)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 19
QuinStreet Inc. (NASDAQ:QNST) is an online performance marketing company that provides customer acquisition services for its clients in the United States and internationally. The company has been a loss-making venture so far but it could breakeven in the next 12 months. The key verticals for the firm like insurance, home services, credit cards and banking are showing robust growth. It received an upward price target from $23 to $27 from Stephens with an Overweight rating.
Q1-25 results have been strong as QNST saw its revenue increase by 125% y-o-y primarily driven by higher auto insurance budgets and an increase in client, media and product footprint. Analysts believe that the momentum from the insurance sector is expected to continue and at the current rate of growth, breakeven should be achieved in the next 12 months. QNST has also managed to expand its margin and the digital marketing space is the focus area for the company to maintain the run rate in 2025.
8. Ziff Davis Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 19
Ziff Davis Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD) is a digital media and internet company in the United States and internationally. Key products include PCMag for laboratory-based product reviews, technology news and buying guides; Mashable for publishing technology and culture content; Spiceworks Ziff Davis provides digital content of IT products and services; retailMeNot, a savings destination platform.
The revenue grew by 3.7% in Q3 and the losses narrowed if the goodwill impairment amount is adjusted. The guidance of the firm remains stable for the remaining year as the company looks to grow inorganically by acquiring companies. Recently ZD acquired FullContact, a company that provides cloud-based software products. This should expand ZD’s customer base and enable it to access newer markets. While the financial impact is not expected to be material, the ability to strengthen its cloud capacity will also provide business opportunities in the future.
7. Magnite Inc. (NASDAQ:MGNI)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 20
Magnite Inc. (NASDAQ:MGNI) is an omni-channel sell-side advertising platform in the United States and internationally. The company’s platform offers applications and services for sellers of digital advertising inventory or publishers that own and operate CTV channels, applications, websites, and other digital media properties.
In a recent development, MGNI entered into a partnership with Samsung Ads. This will give MGNI access to countries like Singapore, Thailand, and the Philippines by enabling the firm to display targeted ads through Samsung TV Plus. MGNI has also been selected as FIFA+’s global programmatic provider across North America, EMEA, LATAM, and APAC. FIFA+ is a global platform that offers free live matches and archived football content. The firm will provide advertisements across devices that can access FIFA+. It is not surprising that the institutional holding within the company is high and with collaborations with companies like Netflix, United Airlines and LG Ad Solutions, the business prospects look bright.
6. Criteo S.A. (NASDAQ:CRTO)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 21
Criteo S.A. (NASDAQ:CRTO) provides marketing and monetization services on the Internet. The appointment of Michael Komasinski as Chief Executive Officer has got the stock buzzing. The CEO has highlighted the need for an AI-based transformation that would strengthen its position. With over 2 decades of experience in Adtech and advisory roles with META and Microsoft, investors are optimistic about the future of the company.
All eyes will be set on the Q4 results and particularly the guidance for 2025. The Q3 performance witnessed a 2.2% contraction in revenue y-o-y and an EPS miss by 59%. With an addressable market expected to touch $70 billion by 2027, the opportunities remain immense and CRTO should look to have a larger pie by enhancing its products and expanding its client base in the retail media sector.
5. Advantage Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ:ADV)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 22
Advantage Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ:ADV) provides business solutions to consumer goods manufacturers and retailers in North America and internationally. In its primary markets the USA and Canada, it covers more than 4,000 clients and over 100,000 retail locations. Its marketing segment caters to brand-centric services like shopper and consumer marketing and brand experiential services. Recently, it was featured in the Chief Marketer’s 2025 Top Agencies of the Year.
ADV’s marketing agency Advantage Unified Commerce received Amazon’s Gold Tier recognition and this will definitely help the brand procure more clients using Amazon stores. It has also forayed into direct-to-home sampling, a business offering higher margins and providing an initial touch point for customers before they actually shop through online channels or physical stores. ADV also provides exemplary service in the Experiential Service segment across its store enabling it to expand its outreach to a large client base across North America.
4. Integral Ad Science Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:IAS)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 24
Integral Ad Science Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:IAS) is a digital advertising verification company in the United States, Europe, Singapore, Australia, Japan, India, and the Nordics. Its cloud-based platform IAS Signal offers return on ad spend needs along with measurement and verification of digital advertising across devices.
The market for IAS is largely untapped and includes live feed verification across platforms like TikTok and Facebook. The fundamentals of the company also look decent with a sticky revenue and an impressive growth in earnings over the last five years. Scotiabank has already initiated coverage on the stock and the price target of $10 has already been realized. Analysts believe that the valuation is attractive and there is scope for growth backed up by innovative products. IAS has also entered into a partnership with Kwai, Brazil’s leading social media app, to support viewability and Invalid Traffic (IVT) measurement. This deal will give IAS access to over 100 million users across Brazil and Indonesia.
3. The Interpublic Group of Companies Inc. (NYSE:IPG)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 25
The Interpublic Group of Companies Inc. (NYSE:IPG) provides advertising and marketing services worldwide. There have been rumors that Omnicom would merge with IPG, leading to a consolidation in the industry. While this move has raised eyebrows, IPG offers strong fundamentals with asset-light business, higher return on capital and an established expertise in the industry. FMI Small Cap Equity Strategy sold its 2.6% stake after the proposal by Omnicon due to integration risks.
JP Morgan has raised the target price of IPG from $33 to $39 and views the acquisition in a positive light with better competitive positioning and higher operational efficiencies. IPG not only offers a generous free cash flow but is also a dividend-paying firm with a forward yield of 4.6%. The consolidation should provide a better playing field, enabling the merged entity to work in unison and giving it better pricing power.
2. Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 26
Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) is another stock offering a decent forward yield of 3.2% along with an attractive valuation of 12x its trailing 12-month EPS. While the markets have been speculative on its new drive to acquire Interpublic, the fundamentals remain robust with earnings expected to increase by 7% this year. It has a diversified portfolio across advertising, brand consultation and digital marketing with clients like Apple, Chanel, Disney and Volkswagen.
The Interpublic deal would make OMC more competent in dealing with big tech giants that have been disrupting the advertising world. In an industry where AI tools have enabled faster and cheaper ad creation, OMC will benefit from this consolidation by obtaining better pricing power. It will also provide cross-selling opportunities to Interpublic’s clients like Johnson & Johnson, Levi Strauss, and Mattel.
1. Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CCO)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 31
Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CCO) is an out-of-home advertising company that provides advertising services through billboards, including bulletins and posters, as well as spectaculars, which are customized display structures with videos, multi-dimensional lettering and figures.
The third quarter revenue increased by 6.1% y-o-y on a constant currency basis with CCO bagging a 15-year contract for roadside advertising in zones controlled by the New York MTA. Another recent deal concluded involves a 10-year partnership with Huntsville-Madison County Airport Authority. CCO is looking to boost its digital expertise in a bid to improve the outreach of its clients. It has also offloaded its Europe-North business which will provide it the necessary cash to repay its debt and at the same time enable CCO to focus on its growing segments like America and Airport. A higher order from Port Authority of New York and New Jersey airports along with greater demand for digital and printed billboards have led to higher-than-expected revenues for these segments.
While we acknowledge the potential of CCO as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than CCO but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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