GoDaddy GDDY reported first-quarter 2026 earnings of $1.60 per share, up 6% year over year and above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.53 by 4.58%.
Revenues rose 6.1% from the year-ago quarter to $1.27 billion, topping the consensus mark by 0.35%. The quarter reflected steady demand across the platform, with ARPU increasing 9.3% year over year to $246.
The company emphasized that it is prioritizing higher-intent cohorts and pruning lower-value offerings. GoDaddy noted that its newer Airo cohorts are showing stronger monetization, with second-product attach accelerating 30% faster versus non-Airo cohorts, helping expand the base of customers spending more than $500 million annually to roughly 10% of total customers.
GDDY’s Q1 Top Line in Detail
Applications and Commerce, comprising websites, productivity applications, and payments and commerce, continued to be the clear growth engine. A&C revenues climbed 11.6% year over year to $498.2 million (contributing 39.3% to total revenues), supported by solid attach of subscription-based solutions as the company pushes deeper into presence and commerce offerings.
GoDaddy Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
GoDaddy Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | GoDaddy Inc. Quote
Core Platform revenues, consisting of domains, aftermarket, hosting and security, increased 2.8% to $768.7 million (contributing 60.7% to total revenues). Management pointed to 5% growth in primary domains, helped by a richer mix toward higher-priced non-com TLDs, while results were partially offset by softness in non-core hosting, the.CO registry contract expiration and tougher comparisons in aftermarket.
Total bookings increased 2.7% year over year to $1.46 billion. A&C bookings grew 9%, while Core Platform bookings declined 1%, reflecting the combined impacts of promotional activity, the.CO registry contract expiration and a stronger aftermarket environment last year.
GDDY’s Q1 Operating Results
Normalized EBITDA increased 13.5% to $413.5 million, and the normalized EBITDA margin improved 210 basis points to 32.6%. Segment profitability advanced, with the A&C segment EBITDA margin at 45.2% and the Core Platform segment EBITDA margin at 33%, benefiting from product mix and continued operational execution.
Profitability improved meaningfully in the quarter. Operating income rose 25.6% year over year to $310.5 million, with operating margin expanding 380 basis points to 24.5%, reflecting structural leverage as the model scales.
GoDaddy’s Balance Sheet & Cash Flow
As of March 31, 2026, cash and cash equivalents were $1.3 billion compared with $1.1 billion as of Dec. 31. As of March 31, 2026, GoDaddy had a net debt of $2.6 billion.
Net cash provided by operating activities were $471.5 million compared with $370.6 million in the previous quarter. The free cash flow was $473.6 million in the first quarter of 2026 compared with $370.3 million in the previous quarter.
GoDaddy Offers Q2 & FY26 Guidance
For the second quarter of 2026, GoDaddy expects revenues of $1.285 billion to $1.305 billion, which implies 6% growth at the midpoint. The company reiterated expectations for A&C revenue growth in the low double digits and Core Platform growth in the low single digits for both the second quarter and full year.
Management reaffirmed 2026 revenue guidance of $5.195 billion to $5.275 billion and continues to target a normalized EBITDA margin of more than 33% for the year. The company indicated it will ramp targeted paid marketing for Airo AI Builder, funded through efficiencies elsewhere in the business, as it scales distribution while maintaining margin discipline.
For 2026, GoDaddy now anticipates a free cash flow of approximately $1.8 billion.
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
GDDY currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Audioeye AEYE, Advanced Energy Industries AEIS and MKS MKSI are some better-ranked stocks that investors can consider in the broader Zacks Computer & Technology sector. All the stocks presently sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Shares of Audioeye have lost 28.3% in the year-to-date period. AEYE is set to report its first-quarter 2026 results on May 13.
Shares of Advanced Energy Industries have gained 83.4% in the year-to-date period. AEIS is likely to report its first-quarter 2026 results on May 4.
Shares of MKS have gained 77.6% in the year-to-date period. MKSI is likely to report its first-quarter 2026 results on May 6.
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