The third financial quarter (Q3) of the year was good from the perspective of advertising growth, but rougher waters could be ahead depending on the political positions taken by President-elect Donald Trump and future members of his administration, according to an investor note released on Monday.
The note, from media research and analysis firm MoffettNathanson, said the advertising overall grew by 16 percent during Q3, boosted in large part by the 2024 Summer Olympic Games and higher ad spend from the presidential election. The rate of growth slowed somewhat when those two events were removed from consideration, analyst Michael Nathanson said.
The rate of growth could be slowed largely along political lines moving forward, Nathanson warned, especially if Trump moves forward with certain industry tariffs and if his nominee to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., reforms matters involving the ability of pharmaceutical companies to advertise across platforms.
“Yes, the quarter was home to shiny figures, but the gloss may fade in 2025,” Nathanson warned. The full note, “U.S. Advertising: The Gilded Quarter,” is available to MoffettNathanson clients on their research page.
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Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story and subsequent revisions were based on a research note published by MoffettNathanson on Monday, which The Desk received from a reporter at another news outlet. The initial draft was pulled from publication after an executive at MoffettNathanson objected to the use of certain information and data, which the company views as proprietary and confidential, though the executive acknowledged MoffettNathanson’s prior practice of providing full research notes to reporters, without restriction on their use. The company has agreed to provide direct access to research notes moving forward, subject to certain limitations on their use. The Desk’s standards of practice and ethics statement is available here.
