(Reuters) – Activist investor Starboard Value LP has purchased a 6.5% stake in web services firm GoDaddy Inc worth about $800 million, The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Shares of GoDaddy, which have dropped 8% so far this year, rose 2.6% in premarket market trading.
According to the report, Starboard plans to push the company to improve its performance.
Arizona-based GoDaddy has seen a surge in online traffic as several businesses increasingly shifted to digital operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Starboard Value and GoDaddy did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
(Reporting by Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)
