Is GoDaddy Stock a Smart Addition to Your Portfolio?

Key Points

• GoDaddy is a leading web hosting and domain management service provider, enabling small businesses to build and manage their online presence with AI-powered tools.
• GoDaddy reported 747% YoY net income growth in Q1 2024, but most of it was due to a $258 million tax benefit.
• GoDaddy will be added to the S&P 500 index on June 24, 2024.

Web hosting, e-commerce, and applications provider GoDaddy Inc. NYSE: GDDY stock recently hit all-time highs in anticipation of being added to the S&P 500 index on June 24, 2024. The company has added artificial intelligence (AI) tools under AiRO, which can automate website design and functionality in a frictionless, user-friendly manner. AiRO is designed to help customers simplify and streamline processes for building and managing their online presence.

For example, AiRO can suggest domain names based on the project or business description, check for availability, create digital advertisements, and suggest personalized targeting and budgeting to accommodate goals and targets.

GoDaddy operates in the computer and technology sector, competing with e-commerce enablers like Wix.com Ltd. NASDAQ: WIX, Shopify Inc. NYSE: SHOP, and Etsy Inc. NASDAQ: ETSY.

GoDaddy: A One-Stop Shop For Website and E-Commerce Tools

GoDaddy has been the leader in internet domain registration and hosting for over a decade. Its services now include website design, construction, optimization, domain appraisal, auctions, parking, sales, and storefront marketing tools, catering to small business digitization and e-commerce.

The company has demonstrated strong customer retention, with an 85% retention rate that lifts to 92% for customers who have been with the company for over 3 years. The addition of AI tools has fueled the stock’s appreciation after meandering for years in a range between $88 and $68.

Third-Party Service Providers Take Their Slice of GoDaddy's Pie

It should be noted that GoDaddy procures third-party services, adding to its variable cost structure. For example, it attains domain registration services from VeriSign Inc. NASDAQ: VRSN, hosting services from Amazon.com Inc. NASDAQ: AMZN, AWS, and various productivity tools from Microsoft Co. NASDAQ: MSFT. GoDaddy must pay all third-party providers, which has been cutting into its gross margins. The company compounds revenues with these add-on services to grow to a 21 million user customer base occupying 85 million domains and generating an average revenue per user (ARPU) of $206.

GDDY Stock Consolidates in a Rectangle Channel

The daily candlestick chart for GDDY shows it has been trading in a rectangle channel pattern since May 20, 2024. The channel is comprised of the upper trendline resistance at $140.82 and lower trendline support at $136.87. GDDY attempted a breakout on its spike to new highs at $142.55, but shares immediately fell back down to the lower trendline when it couldn’t hold the break. The daily relative strength index (RSI) has been drifting lower to the 53-band after rejecting the overbought 70-band. Pullback support levels are at $131.84, $127.15, $120.59, and $115.28.

GoDaddy Crushes Q1 2024 EPS Estimates

On May 2, 2024, GoDaddy reported first-quarter 2024 EPS of $2.76, beating consensus estimates of 95 by $1.80. Revenues grew 7% YoY To $1.11 billion, beating consensus estimates by $11.7 million.

GoDaddy's Revenue Growth by Segment

Applications and Commerce (A&C) revenues rose 13% YoY to $383.1 million. Annualized recurring revenue (ARR) for A&C rose 13% YoY to $1.5 billion. Core Platform revenue rose 4% YoY to $725.4 million. Core ARR for 3% YoY to $2.3 billion. Total bookings rose 9% YoY to $1.3 billion. Net income rose 747% to $401.5 million, representing a 36% margin. However, the company recognized a one-time tax allowance benefit of $258 million, attributed to previous losses’ deferred tax assets and loss carryforwards. 

GoDaddy Provides In-Line Guidance

The company issued in-line guidance for Q2 2024 revenue of $1.10 billion to $1.12 billion versus $1.11 billion consensus estimates. GoDaddy expects full-year 2024 revenues of $4.50 billion to $4.56 billion versus $4.52 billion consensus estimates. A normalized EBITDA margin is expected to be around 31%.

GoDaddy CEO Aman Bhutani commented, "We are off to a great start in 2024, and we are excited to build on this momentum as we execute our mission of empowering entrepreneurs everywhere and making opportunity more inclusive for all.” He continued, “With a dedicated team and focus on our key initiatives and innovation, we are propelling profitable growth that maximizes free cash flow as we deliver truly magical experiences for our customers."

GoDaddy analyst ratings and price targets are at MarketBeat. Analysts have a consensus price target of up $149.92 or 9% on GDDY.