Summary
GoDaddy's third quarter revenue reached $1.15 billion, up 7.3% from the prior-year quarter. Growth was lopsided. Applications and Commerce revenue rose 16.5%, while Core Platform revenue grew 2.6%. Productivity applications revenue climbed 20.5% and commerce solutions revenue jumped 60.0% as payment volume increased. Core leaned on domain registration and add-on revenue, which rose 7.1%, to offset an 8.1% decline in hosting revenue caused by end-of-life product migrations and the disposition of certain hosting assets. Total bookings were $1.24 billion, up 9.0% (9.4% in constant currency). Total annualized recurring revenue was $3.97 billion, up 8.1%, with A&C ARR up 15% to $1.6 billion and Core ARR up 4% to $2.4 billion.
Profitability improved much faster than the top line. Operating income was $253.8 million, up 51.9% from $167.1 million, and operating margin rose to 22.1% from 15.6%. Net income attributable to GoDaddy was $190.5 million, up 45.8% from $130.7 million, and diluted earnings per share were $1.32. The nine-month numbers tell a similar story. Revenue was $3.38 billion, up 7.2%. Operating income was $637.9 million, up 78.4%. Net income was $738.3 million, up 183.0%, and diluted earnings per share were $5.09. That nine-month net income figure includes a non-routine, non-cash benefit to income taxes from the conversion of the Desert Newco subsidiary from a partnership to a disregarded entity. Normalized EBITDA was $366.5 million, up 23.8%, at a 31.9% margin. Segment EBITDA margins both widened, to 46.0% in A&C and 33.0% in Core.
Cash generation held up well. Net cash provided by operating activities was $355.2 million for the quarter, up 26.1%, and $947.2 million for the nine months, up 26.3%. Free cash flow was $362.7 million, up 29.4%, while unlevered free cash flow was $399.4 million, up 24.8%. Capital expenditures dropped to $5.0 million for the quarter, down 46.8%, and to $12.2 million year to date, down 67.9%. Deferred revenue was $2.26 billion, up 7.7%, and remaining performance obligations were $3.14 billion, up 8.3%. The balance sheet carried $767.1 million of cash and cash equivalents, $3.9 billion of total debt and $3.1 billion of net debt at September 30, 2024. Year to date through October 28, 2024, the company repurchased 5.2 million shares for $668.1 million at an average price of $129.02.
Customer metrics were mixed. Total customers at period end were 20,725 thousand, compared with 21,025 thousand a year earlier, while ARPU was $215 versus $200. Domains under management were 81,658 thousand, compared with 84,035 thousand. Management raised full-year 2024 revenue guidance to a range of $4.545 billion to $4.565 billion, about 7% growth at the midpoint, and lifted the full-year NEBITDA margin outlook to approximately 30%. For the fourth quarter, guidance calls for revenue growth of roughly 7% at the midpoint versus the same period in 2023, and an NEBITDA margin of approximately 31%. Fourth quarter and full-year A&C revenue growth is expected in the mid-teens, with Core growth in the low single digits. The company also raised its full-year unlevered free cash flow target to at least $1.475 billion, growth of 18% versus $1.254 billion in 2023, and its free cash flow target to at least $1.325 billion, growth of 22% versus $1.084 billion in 2023.
The risk list is long and familiar. GoDaddy points to macroeconomic conditions, competition, cyberattacks or breaches of its security measures, dependence on payment card networks and acquiring processors, interest rates and inflationary pressures, and geopolitical tensions. It also flags the need to remediate a material weakness in its internal control over financial reporting. Restructuring and other charges were $0.4 million in the quarter, down from $9.8 million a year earlier. The nine-month total of $29.7 million included $17.4 million of severance, employee benefits and equity-based compensation and $5.7 million tied to abandoned operating leases. GoDaddy had $998.7 million available under its revolver and plans to show expanded Airo capabilities at an investor dinner on December 3, 2024.
Forecast
Reported figures
GAAP, from SEC filings| Metric | Q3 FY2024 | Q2 FY2024 | QoQ | Q3 FY2023 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $1.15B | $1.12B | +2.1% | $1.07B | +7.3% |
| General & administrative | $94.8M | $95.6M | -0.8% | $91.6M | +3.5% |
| Total operating expenses | $893.8M | $916.3M | -2.5% | $902.6M | -1.0% |
| Operating income (loss) | $253.8M | $208.2M | +21.9% | $167.1M | +51.9% |
| Operating margin | 22.1% | 18.5% | +3.6 pp | 15.6% | +6.5 pp |
| Net income (loss) | $190.5M | $146.3M | +30.2% | $131.0M | +45.4% |
| Net margin | 16.6% | 13.0% | +3.6 pp | 12.3% | +4.4 pp |
| Customers | 2 | 3 | -33.3% | 2 | ±0.0% |
Risks
GoDaddy disclosed a material weakness in internal control over financial reporting related to accounting for income taxes and related disclosures, and management concluded internal control over financial reporting was not effective as of December 31, 2023. Remediation is ongoing and failure to remediate could impair timely and accurate financial reporting or lead to restatement, regulatory action, or stockholder lawsuits.
The filing expands AI risk, noting increasing use of AI such as GoDaddy Airo and generative AI, with risks including intellectual property infringement, privacy, cybersecurity, bias, and evolving laws like the E.U. AI Act and U.S. state AI laws. Compliance costs and reputational harm could increase operating expenses.
GoDaddy states it is frequently targeted and experiences a high rate of cyber attacks, some of which have allowed threat actors to gain access to networks and data, including a multi-year campaign by a sophisticated threat actor group and successful social engineering attempts. The FTC investigation into a 2020 incident remains ongoing and could result in monetary or other costs.
GoDaddy Payments is subject to money transmission, card network rules, and third-party processor holdback or suspension risks. MD&A highlights 60.0% growth in commerce solutions revenue for the quarter and 52.1% for the nine months, increasing exposure to payment volume, fraud, and regulatory penalties.
MD&A reports total customers at period end decreased to 20,725 thousand from 21,025 thousand, and domains under management decreased to 81,658 thousand from 84,035 thousand, even as ARPU rose to $215 from $200. The risk factor notes future success depends on maintaining strong renewals and attracting new customers.
The filing lists intense competition for A&C and Core products from Shopify, Block, Wix, Squarespace, Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and others, with some competitors offering domains or security certificates at low or no cost. It also notes competitors are investing in AI, which could require significant additional investment.
GoDaddy has implemented multiple workforce reductions, including approximately 550, 250, 180, and 100 employees, and expects substantially all remaining restructuring payments by the end of 2024. The risk factor warns restructuring may not reduce costs or improve margins and may cause attrition and operational disruptions.
Bookings outside the U.S. were approximately 33% of total bookings for 2023, 2022, and 2021, and the company faces risks in higher-risk regions such as India, China, and Ukraine, plus sanctions and geopolitical conflicts involving Russia and the Middle East. MD&A reports international revenue of $369.4 million, up 6.9% on a reported and constant currency basis.
The filing cites higher interest rates, inflation, recession or economic slowdown, and geopolitical tensions that could reduce demand for products and services, increase refunds and chargebacks, or adversely affect third parties. GoDaddy says it has experienced inflationary pressures in certain areas but not yet a material negative impact.
GoDaddy has significant long-term debt with covenants restricting indebtedness, liens, mergers, asset sales, and restricted payments. MD&A notes interest expense decreased 10.5% for the quarter and 11.2% for the nine months due to refinancings, but the debt level could still limit flexibility and divert cash flow.
A substantial portion of cloud infrastructure is provisioned through AWS, and the company is transitioning workloads from company-owned data centers to third-party cloud providers. Any AWS disruption, termination, or security compromise could interrupt service and harm results.
The filing warns that evolving technologies, alternative systems for directing Internet traffic, social media reliance, and search engine algorithm changes could reduce the value and demand for domain names and websites. This is specific to GoDaddy's Core platform.
SaaS KPIs
All quarters →Total bookings
Domains under management
Unlevered free cash flow
Free cash flow
Average revenue per user (ARPU)
Total customers at period end
NEBITDA margin
Annualized Recurring Revenue (ARR)
Normalized EBITDA (NEBITDA)
Summary, forecast, risks and KPIs are extracted from GoDaddy Inc.'s SEC filings for Q3 FY2024 (10-Q / 10-K and the 8-K earnings release); GAAP figures in the summary are checked against the reported XBRL data. They can contain errors; the filings are authoritative. Processed Oct 1, 2026.