Eternal, the parent company of Zomato, delivered a strong set of December quarter results while announcing a major leadership transition that marks a turning point for the fast-growing food and quick commerce firm.
The company reported a sharp jump in profits and revenue for the third quarter of FY26, even as founder Deepinder Goyal stepped down as chief executive officer to make way for Blinkit head Albinder Singh Dhindsa.
Profit and revenue jump sharply in Q3FY26
Eternal said consolidated profit rose 72.88 percent year on year to ₹102 crore in the December quarter. The company had posted a profit of ₹59 crore in the same period last year, according to its exchange filing.
Revenue from operations more than tripled to ₹16,315 crore from ₹5,405 crore a year earlier, reflecting strong momentum across food delivery, quick commerce, and business-to-business segments.
Adjusted revenue grew 190 percent year on year and 19 percent quarter on quarter to ₹16,692 crore. On a like-for-like basis, growth stood at 64 percent year on year.
Consolidated adjusted EBITDA increased 28 percent year on year and 63 percent sequentially to ₹364 crore.
Business-to-consumer net order value rose 55 percent year on year and 11 percent quarter on quarter to ₹25,732 crore. The company said this crossed ₹1 lakh crore on an annualised basis.
Food delivery sees recovery in growth and margins
Eternal said its core food delivery business continued to recover, with net order value growing 16.6 percent year on year and 4.5 percent quarter on quarter.
“This was the second consecutive quarter of NOV growth acceleration following the bottom of 13.1 percent NOV growth in Q1FY26,” the company said in its filing.
Gross order value grew 21.3 percent year on year and 5.2 percent sequentially.
The segment also delivered record profitability. Adjusted EBITDA margin reached an all-time high of 5.4 percent of NOV. Absolute adjusted EBITDA stood at ₹531 crore, up 26 percent year on year and 6 percent quarter on quarter.
Quick commerce turns profitable at the EBITDA level
Quick commerce remained the fastest-growing segment. Net order value rose 121 percent year on year and 14 percent quarter on quarter, despite GST changes and seasonal factors.
“Like for like NOV growth stood at 130 percent plus year on year,” the company said.
Eternal added 211 net new stores during the quarter. Total store count stood at 2,027 at the end of December, slightly below its guidance of 2,100 stores.
For the first time, the quick commerce business posted a positive adjusted EBITDA on a quarterly basis. It reported a profit of ₹4 crore, compared with a loss of ₹156 crore in the previous quarter.
Going out business sees higher losses due to investments
The company’s going-out vertical reported 20 percent year-on-year growth in net order value.
However, adjusted EBITDA margin declined to 4.7 percent for NOV. The segment posted an adjusted EBITDA loss of ₹121 crore, widening from a loss of ₹63 crore in the previous quarter.
Eternal said the higher losses were driven by continued investments in building and expanding the category.
Hyperpure turns EBITDA positive
Hyperpure, Eternal’s business-to-business restaurant supply platform, reported growth of 33 percent year on year and 7 percent quarter on quarter.
Adjusted EBITDA margin turned positive for the first time. The segment posted a profit of ₹1 crore, compared with a loss of ₹5 crore in the previous quarter.
Deepinder Goyal steps down as CEO
Alongside the earnings announcement, Eternal said founder Deepinder Goyal has resigned as Director, Managing Director, and Chief Executive Officer, effective February 1, 2026.
The board has recommended Goyal’s appointment as Vice Chairman and Director, subject to shareholder approval. His proposed term is five years.
Blinkit CEO Albinder Singh Dhindsa will take over as Chief Executive Officer and Key Managerial Personnel from February 1.
Goyal explains decision to move on
In a post shared by the company, Goyal said his decision was driven by a desire to explore new ideas outside the scope of a listed company.
“Of late, I have found myself drawn to a set of new ideas that involve significantly higher risk exploration and experimentation. These are the kinds of ideas that are better pursued outside a public company like Eternal,” he said.
“If these ideas belonged inside Eternal’s strategic scope, I would have pursued them within the company. They do not. Eternal deserves to remain focused and disciplined while exploring new areas of growth that are relevant to its current line of business,” Goyal added.
Goyal co-founded the company, formerly known as Zomato, in 2008. He holds an integrated master’s degree in technology, mathematics, and computing from IIT Delhi, and previously worked at Bain and Company.
What it means for investors
The combination of accelerating profitability, improving margin,s and a planned leadership transition puts Eternal at a critical stage of its evolution.
With quick commerce and B2B operations turning profitable at the EBITDA level, analysts will closely watch how the company balances growth investments with financial discipline under new leadership in the coming quarters.
