Eternal’s Q4 net profit zooms over fourfold to ₹174 cr led by Blinkit growth
BENGALURU: Eternal Ltd, the parent company of Zomato and flash trading platform Blinkit, reported a sharp 346% year-on-year rise in net profit. ₹174 crore for the March quarter, driven by strong growth in Blinkit’s net order value and increased operating leverage.
The company’s consolidated operating income increased by 196% annually ₹17,292 crore during the quarter.
Fast trading service Blinkit remained the main driver of growth in net order value (NOV). ₹14,386 crore, up 95% from the previous year, driven by accelerated store opening as well as rapid unit expansion.
Service returns positive adjusted EBITDA ₹37 crore in the quarter from negative EBITDA ₹178 million lira in the same period last year.
Albinder says Blinkit’s NOV growth CAGR is expected to be over 60% in the next three years Eternal’s group CEO Dhindsa said in a letter to shareholders on Tuesday.
“HE [indicated CAGR growth] This means the business will grow by more than 4 times its current scale in three years. Today, gig commerce is still concentrated in the top 15-20 cities and a relatively narrow set of categories. The potential for growth in geography, diversity and frequency is significant, Dhindsa said.
Blinkit fulfilled 273.9 million orders and added 216 dark stores during the quarter. The net average order value was: ₹525.
Eternal’s Zomato-led food delivery business has seen relatively steady growth, with revenue up 33% ₹2,737 crore continues to support the company’s cash flow. The food distribution arm’s November deadline has been reached ₹9,757 crore, up 19% from the previous year.
Lowering the minimum order value for free delivery ₹from 99 ₹199 for Gold customers helped increase the monthly transacting customer base to 25.4 million during the quarter and also enabled more frequent transactions among budget-conscious existing customers, said Deepinder Goyal, vice president.
“We expect growth to continue trending towards our long-term expectation of 20+% annual November growth and margins to remain in the range of 5-6%,” Goyal added.
Eternal’s shares closed up 1.09% on Tuesday. ₹258.28 on the National Stock Exchange in a largely weak market.
The flash trading landscape has become increasingly competitive as competitors increase investment and scale. While rival Swiggy’s Instamart reported strong order growth and expanded footprint, Zepto filed draft documents with public markets regulator Sebi in December. Meanwhile, Reliance Retail’s JioMart has accelerated its fast delivery push, leveraging its supply chain and seller network to deepen reach and improve unit economics.
Intensifying competition has triggered higher spending across platforms on dark store expansion, customer acquisition and discounts, keeping profitability under pressure even as demand remains strong.
“At an aggregate level, profitability has increased steadily on a year-on-year basis (see chart) and we expect this trend to continue. Today we are more confident than ever of our 5-6% margin target – the only variable is the speed at which we get there,” Dhindsa said in the shareholders’ letter.
Eternal underwent a management shakeup last quarter, with leadership changes aimed at sharpening practices across its businesses and improving long-term profitability. Goyal stepped down as group CEO and handed over the reigns to Blinkit founder and CEO Albinder.
