Eternal, the newly rebranded parent company of Zomato, reported a dramatic financial split this quarter: while revenue surged 70% YoY to ₹7,167 crore, net profit dropped sharply by 90% to just ₹25 crore in Q1 FY26.
The results reflect a deliberate strategy scale now, profit later driven by aggressive expansion across its quick commerce arm, Blinkit.
Blinkit Leads the Growth Surge
- Blinkit contributed significantly to Eternal’s revenue growth, clocking ₹2,400 crore in Q1, up 154% YoY.
- Food delivery business (Zomato) added ₹2,261 crore, up 16%.
- Hyperpure, its B2B food supplies vertical, reported 89% growth to ₹2,355 crore.
- Together, these verticals helped push Eternal’s consolidated revenue from ₹4,206 crore in Q1 FY25 to ₹7,167 crore in Q1 FY26.
Notably, Blinkit surpassed Zomato in net order value and is now contributing nearly 50% of Eternal’s annualised NOV (~$10 billion).
Operating Costs Push Profit Down
- Total expenses rose 77% YoY to ₹7,433 crore, largely due to Blinkit’s operational scale up.
- Eternal added 243 new dark stores, subsidized deliveries, and ran aggressive discounting to accelerate customer acquisition.
- Adjusted EBITDA declined 42%, landing at ₹172 crore, as the company prioritized growth over profitability this quarter.
Market Reaction and Forward Focus
Despite the sharp drop in profit, Eternal’s stock rose 7.5% post-results, reflecting investor confidence in long-term value from Blinkit’s momentum.
The company emphasized two priorities for FY26:
- Maturing Blinkit’s economics while maintaining growth.
- Disciplined rollout of new verticals like its Bistro cloud kitchen initiative.
Management signaled that margin recovery will follow as recently launched Blinkit stores reach maturity and efficiency.
Eternal is betting big on quick commerce. The numbers show strong consumer demand now the focus shifts to sustainable unit economics.
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