(Reuters) – GoDaddy on Thursday recorded a massive drop in its fourth-quarter profit and forecast annual revenue in line with analysts’ estimate, sending its shares down about 3% in extended trading.
The lackluster outlook by the company, which helps businesses set up online domains, comes after investors drove an 85% rally in its shares last year expecting large artificial intelligence-linked payouts.
The company’s fourth-quarter net income dropped 82% to $198.6 million. Net income was inclusive of a non-routine, non-cash income tax benefit, it said.
GoDaddy, which primarily caters to small and medium businesses, has been rolling out AI features to gain traction for its services. It launched GoDaddy Airo — an AI-powered tool to design and build a business’ online presence — in 2024.
The premium version of its Airo tool, which includes services such website creation based on existing social media presence, could help drive improved conversion and cross-selling across GoDaddy’s portfolio, Jefferies analysts said in a note in December.
The company’s revenue for the quarter ended December 31 came in at $1.19 billion, compared with analysts’ average estimate of $1.18 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.
It forecast its first-quarter revenue to be between $1.18 billion and $1.20 billion, in line with the estimate of $1.19 billion.
The company expects 2025 revenue in the range of $4.86 billion to $4.94 billion, also in line with the estimate of $4.90 billion.
(Reporting by Arsheeya Bajwa in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
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