Rice Hall James & Associates LLC Buys 295,218 Shares of GoDaddy Inc. $GDDY

Key Points

• Rice Hall James & Associates LLC sharply increased its GoDaddy stake in the first quarter, buying 295,218 additional shares and lifting its holdings to 319,453 shares valued at about $26.4 million.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but generally positive, with GoDaddy carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $118.43 despite some recent target cuts.
• GoDaddy recently beat earnings and revenue estimates for the quarter, but the stock also faces some overhang from insider selling and reported legal investigations into possible securities-law issues.

Rice Hall James & Associates LLC boosted its position in GoDaddy Inc. (NYSE:GDDY - Free Report) by 1,218.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 319,453 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 295,218 shares during the period. GoDaddy comprises approximately 1.5% of Rice Hall James & Associates LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC owned 0.24% of GoDaddy worth $26,409,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in GoDaddy in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Rachor Investment Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of GoDaddy during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of GoDaddy by 6,600.0% during the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 201 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of GoDaddy by 93.8% during the 1st quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 372 shares of the technology company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares during the period. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. increased its holdings in GoDaddy by 191.0% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 259 shares of the technology company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. 90.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on GDDY shares. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of GoDaddy in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of GoDaddy in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $100.00 target price for the company. Benchmark reduced their target price on shares of GoDaddy from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of GoDaddy from $154.00 to $124.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of GoDaddy from $77.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $118.43.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Mark Mccaffrey sold 3,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.92, for a total value of $290,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 105,728 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,766,965.76. This trade represents a 3.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sigal Zarmi sold 350 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.84, for a total transaction of $30,744.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,708 shares of the company's stock, valued at $501,390.72. This trade represents a 5.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 16,751 shares of company stock valued at $1,480,228. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

GoDaddy News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting GoDaddy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Several recent articles highlight GoDaddy’s valuation as potentially attractive after its sharp pullback, with some coverage arguing the stock may be mispriced and pointing to improving long-term fundamentals. GoDaddy NYSE: GDDY Looks Mispriced After Its Steep Drop
• Positive Sentiment: Investor interest is also being supported by expectations for upcoming earnings, with some analysts still projecting revenue and earnings growth ahead of GoDaddy’s next report. GoDaddy (GDDY) Earnings Expected to Grow: What to Know Ahead of Next Week's Release
• Positive Sentiment: GoDaddy has also drawn attention for its developer-platform push, which some articles frame as a potential catalyst if the strategy expands the company’s growth opportunities. GoDaddy’s Pricing Misstep and Developer Push Could Be A Game Changer For GoDaddy (GDDY)
• Neutral Sentiment: GoDaddy released its quarterly results recently, and the company previously beat analyst estimates on earnings and revenue, which continues to anchor investor expectations heading into the next report. GoDaddy (GDDY) Launches Developer Platform As Fair Value Narrative Stays In Focus
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms, including Rosen Law Firm and Kaplan Fox & Kilsheimer, announced or reiterated investigations into possible securities-law violations and potentially misleading disclosures at GoDaddy, increasing legal overhang and uncertainty for shareholders. ROSEN, TRUSTED INVESTOR COUNSEL, Encourages GoDaddy Inc. Investors to Inquire About Securities Class Action Investigation - GDDY

GoDaddy Stock Performance

NYSE:GDDY opened at $93.08 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.86, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. GoDaddy Inc. has a 52-week low of $71.59 and a 52-week high of $168.13. The firm has a market cap of $12.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.73, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.89. The business's fifty day moving average is $86.03 and its 200 day moving average is $89.47.

GoDaddy (NYSE:GDDY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The technology company reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.26 billion. GoDaddy had a return on equity of 366.90% and a net margin of 17.32%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.51 EPS. Research analysts predict that GoDaddy Inc. will post 7.15 EPS for the current year.

About GoDaddy

GoDaddy is a technology company that provides a suite of online services aimed primarily at small businesses, entrepreneurs and individuals looking to establish and grow an online presence. The company's core activities include domain name registration and aftermarket services, a range of website hosting options, and tools for building, managing and promoting websites. Its product mix is designed to simplify the technical aspects of running a website so customers can focus on their businesses.

Product and service offerings span website builders and managed WordPress hosting, shared and dedicated hosting, e-commerce capabilities, email and productivity solutions, SSL certificates and site security tools, and online marketing and search engine optimization services.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding GDDY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for GoDaddy Inc. (NYSE:GDDY - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.