Eternal Q3 Preview: Revenue could jump 16%, margins likely to remain flat

Eternal Q3FY26 Result Preview: Shares of Eternal Ltd, the parent company of Zomato, were trading lower at Rs 279.45, down 2.87 per cent on Friday as investors remained cautious ahead of the Q3FY26 results due on January 21.

Revenue and earnings outlook

Analysts expect the company’s consolidated revenue to reach around Rs 15,770 crore, up about 16 per cent from the previous quarter. EBITDA is expected to be around Rs 300 crore, indicating a quarter-on-quarter rise of nearly 25 per cent, while margin is likely to remain around 1.9 per cent showing stable cost management despite higher operational spends.

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PAT estimates

Profit after tax is expected to be in the range of Rs 56–124 crore considering in factors like investments, operational pressures, and Blinkit’s transition to a 1P model, affecting comparability with earlier periods.

Segment Performance

Food delivery is expected to have grown around 3 per cent in November, and quick commerce may have risen 15 per cent. Analysts estimate that 284 new dark stores were added this quarter, taking the total to 2,100 outlets, supporting growth in the quick commerce segment.

The Blinkit angle

According to Zee Business Research team, Blinkit’s loss is likely to narrow, while margins across district operations are expected to remain stable. Analysts are of the opinion that the investors will closely monitor management commentary on competition and the 10-minute delivery initiative, which are key focus areas.

Summary

The quarter is likely to give mixed results, with a stron revenue growth affected by margin pressures. Growth in Blinkit and district operations will be a key signal for market participants watching the company’s path to profitability.

Eternal Q2FY26 result highlights

Eternal, on October 16, reported a sharp a 183 per cent year-on-year jump in consolidated revenue to Rs 13,590 crore for the quarter ended September 30, beating analysts' expectations. However, its net profit declined 63 per cent to Rs 65 crore, much worse than what the Street had anticipated.

Sequentially, revenue nearly doubled from Rs 7,167 crore in Q1 FY26, while profit after tax (PAT) rose from Rs 25 crore.

Eternal’s Q2 FY26 results delivered a mixed performance compared with Zee Business estimates. Revenue was expected to be Rs 8,584 crore, EBITDA Rs 237 crore, PAT Rs 126 crore, and margin 2.8 per cent. The mounting costs of advertising, sales promotion, and delivery hurt the margins. The decline in profitability was also indicative of the consequence of the latest takeovers and the swift extension of Blinkit's dark store network.

Total expenses for the Gurugram-based company rose 188 per cent YoY to Rs 13,813 crore. Advertising and sales promotion costs nearly doubled to Rs 806 crore, while delivery-related expenses rose marginally to Rs 2,213 crore.

Revenue from the quick-commerce business (Blinkit) jumped 756 per cent YoY to Rs 9,891 crore, compared with Rs 1,156 crore a year ago, supported by its shift to an inventory ownership model. Sequentially, Blinkit’s revenue rose from Rs 2,400 crore in Q1 FY26.

Despite the topline boost, Blinkit’s EBITDA loss widened to Rs 156 crore from Rs 8 crore a year earlier, largely due to aggressive store expansion. However, on a sequential basis, losses narrowed from Rs 162 crore in Q1 FY26.

The company’s dark store count increased to 1,816 in Q2 FY26 from 791 last year, with average monthly transacting users rising to 20.8 million from 8.9 million in Q2 FY25.