GoDaddy's (NYSE:GDDY) 12% CAGR outpaced the company's earnings growth over the same five-year period

Generally speaking the aim of active stock picking is to find companies that provide returns that are superior to the market average. And in our experience, buying the right stocks can give your wealth a significant boost. For example, long term GoDaddy Inc. (NYSE:GDDY) shareholders have enjoyed a 78% share price rise over the last half decade, well in excess of the market return of around 56% (not including dividends). However, more recent returns haven't been as impressive as that, with the stock returning just 3.7% in the last year.

After a strong gain in the past week, it's worth seeing if longer term returns have been driven by improving fundamentals.

View our latest analysis for GoDaddy

While markets are a powerful pricing mechanism, share prices reflect investor sentiment, not just underlying business performance. One flawed but reasonable way to assess how sentiment around a company has changed is to compare the earnings per share (EPS) with the share price.

Over half a decade, GoDaddy managed to grow its earnings per share at 46% a year. The EPS growth is more impressive than the yearly share price gain of 12% over the same period. So one could conclude that the broader market has become more cautious towards the stock.

The image below shows how EPS has tracked over time (if you click on the image you can see greater detail).

We know that GoDaddy has improved its bottom line over the last three years, but what does the future have in store? This free interactive report on GoDaddy's balance sheet strength is a great place to start, if you want to investigate the stock further.

A Different Perspective

It's good to see that GoDaddy has rewarded shareholders with a total shareholder return of 3.7% in the last twelve months. Having said that, the five-year TSR of 12% a year, is even better. Potential buyers might understandably feel they've missed the opportunity, but it's always possible business is still firing on all cylinders. It's always interesting to track share price performance over the longer term. But to understand GoDaddy better, we need to consider many other factors. For instance, we've identified 3 warning signs for GoDaddy (1 doesn't sit too well with us) that you should be aware of.

If you are like me, then you will not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on US exchanges.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.