Don’t be surprised if a competitor picks up Roku in 2025, according to Needham. “The top 6 reasons to acquire Roku (our view) include installed base, unique datasets, pricing power, shelf space, buy vs build advantages, and the only scaled CTV platform available for purchase today,” he wrote. Analyst Laura Martin. He expects the company to be acquired “at a huge premium” in the next 12 months as Republicans take control of regulatory agencies. Shares were up about 5% before the bell. Despite the 17% year-to-date decline, Martin has a buy rating and a $100 price target, reflecting a 32% upside from Tuesday’s close. Potential buyers include a slew of streamers like Netflix, connected TV advertising companies like The Trade Desk, retailers and large language model operators “hungry for millions of new data points every day,” Martin wrote. On the data front, Roku believes it offers “the best data points on consumer demand/viewing and ad spend,” and that data is “one of its most undervalued assets.” The company’s control over who sees ads on programs also gives it pricing power. “Roku has almost all the power and negotiating leverage in these relationships because of its scale and its ability to be seen using its home pages to target audiences,” Martin said. ROKU YTD mountain Shares this year The company should also leverage its critical data as a negotiating tool to convince a company to acquire it as soon as possible. “Roku is the only large-scale alternative that can be bought,” Martin said. “A buyer has to convince Anthony Wood (Roku’s founder and CEO, who controls Roku’s super-voting shares) to sell, and Roku is his.”
