Eternal, the parent company of Zomato and Blinkit, has taken a sharp hit on its bottom line in the first quarter of FY26, even as its revenues posted a strong surge. The company, led by Deepinder Goyal, reported a consolidated net profit of just ₹25 crore for the April–June quarter—down significantly from ₹253 crore during the same period last year, marking a staggering 90% year-on-year fall.
The topline, however, told a different story. Revenue from operations rose 70% to ₹7,167 crore, thanks in large part to the aggressive growth of its quick commerce arm Blinkit and B2B supply platform Hyperpure.
But that growth came at a cost. Eternal’s profitability took a backseat as it continued pouring money into expanding its fast-delivery and going-out services. Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter dropped to ₹172 crore, down 42% from last year. CFO Akshant Goyal acknowledged that these expansions were weighing on margins, though food delivery margins improved slightly, climbing to 5.0% of Net Order Value (NOV) from 3.9% in Q1FY25.
Expenses ballooned as well, touching ₹7,433 crore—nearly 77% higher than the ₹4,203 crore spent in the corresponding quarter last year.
Seasonal challenges didn’t help. “The first quarter tends to put pressure on margins due to monsoon-related disruptions and fewer available delivery partners,” Deepinder Goyal told shareholders.
In a major shift, Blinkit for the first time overtook Zomato’s food delivery business in terms of Net Order Value. Eternal’s overall B2C NOV rose 55% year-on-year to ₹20,183 crore, with Blinkit alone contributing ₹9,203 crore—up a massive 127% from Q1FY25.
The quick commerce platform also saw its user base explode. Monthly transacting customers on Blinkit more than doubled to 16.9 million, while the company added 243 new stores in just one quarter, taking the total count to 1,544. CEO Albinder Dhindsa said Blinkit remains on track to hit its 2,000-store goal by the end of the year and is simultaneously scaling up warehousing space, which now spans 10.4 million sq. ft.
While Blinkit hasn’t yet turned profitable, its losses are narrowing. The EBITDA margin loss improved to -1.8% of NOV, compared to -2.4% in the previous quarter.
All eyes will now be on whether Eternal can strike a balance between growth and profitability in the quarters ahead.
