Zomato gains 2% on plans to infuse ₹300 crore in quick commerce arm Blinkit

Zomato Ltd shares gained over 2% on Tuesday, June 11, following reports of the company investing ₹300 crore in its quick commerce business arm Blinkit.

The food delivery giant will infuse ₹300 crore in Blinkit, taking its total investment in the quick commerce company to ₹2,300 crore since acquisition, reports suggested citing regulatory filings made with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) by Zomato.

Zomato acquired Blinkit in August 2022, then known as Grofers, for an all-stock deal worth ₹4,477 crore.

The company’s regular infusion of funds in Blinkit underlines the importance of quick commerce business in India, along with Zomato’s focus to stay ahead of competitors like Zepto and Big Basket in the segment.

Further, reports also cite that Zomato is set to invest a sum of ₹100 crore in its subsidiary company Zomato Entertainment Private Ltd, which is responsible for operating the company’s live events as well as the ticketing business.

The restaurant aggregator and food delivery major’s shares have fared well so far this year, reporting healthy double-digit gains and jumping 50% on a year-to-date (YTD) basis. The shares have risen 20% over the last three months.

However, shareholders of Zomato holding the stock for a longer term of one year can be seen reaping the most profitable returns as the company’s shares have shot up by 140% during the period.

For the quarter ended on March 31, 2024, Zomato reported a consolidated net profit of ₹175 crore, after posting net losses of ₹189 crore in the same quarter last year.

Its consolidated revenue from operations witnessed a strong growth of 73.2% to ₹3,562 crore in the March quarter compared to ₹2,056 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal year.

Shares of Zomato Ltd were trading 1.3% higher at ₹184.53 apiece on the NSE at 3:15 pm.