Zomato M-Cap Falls Below $5 Bn, Share Price Hits Record Low Of INR 46

Listed foodtech startup Zomato’s share price hit an all-time low on Monday as its shares went below the INR 50 Mark for the first time since its listing, reaching as low as INR 46 during the early hours of the day’s trading.

Zomato’s shares opened at INR 51 today (July 25), however, the shares quickly took a tumble as trade volume increased and the price dipped below INR 50. Before 10 AM, the shares had bottomed out at INR 46.05 apiece, the lowest-ever price.

Zomato has endured a rocky few months on the markets since its blockbuster listing. 

Over the last month, the company’s share price has dipped more than 28%. Its market cap has fallen to INR 36,195 Cr ($4.54 Bn), well below its last private valuation of $5.4 Bn.

A slew of recent events has triggered a sudden downturn in the company’s share prices, starting from its mega acquisition of Blinkit for around $570 Mn. Since then, Zomato’s shares have been going steadily down in value.

In the aftermath of the Zomato-Blinkit deal, multiple analysts suggested that adding another loss-making company to the portfolio hurt investor sentiment. Since that has increased the chances of a higher cash burn by Zomato, the investors are on their guards right now, resulting in a downturn.

The Blinkit deal was further sunk into controversy, as investors wrote to SEBI complaining of a late disclosure from Zomato leading to losses. The investors said that even though speculation was rife in the media, it did not move to either confirm or deny the same until the very last moment.

Recently, Zomato had also gone on record stating that it has no control over the pricing set by restaurant partners on the platform, claiming to be an intermediary platform between a customer and a restaurant.

At a time when it is being investigated by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for alleged unfair pricing practices, Zomato really could have done without saying that. It already has service level agreements (SLAs) in place regarding food delivery times, quality of service, packaging and more.

Just days ago, Domino’s India was reported in the media as considering taking more of its business away from the likes of Zomato and Swiggy, in the event of commissions increasing. 

“In case of an increase in commission rates, Jubilant will consider shifting more of its businesses from online restaurant platforms to the in-house ordering system,” a confidential letter, addressed to the CCI and accessed by Reuters, read.

The company’s financials are not doing great either. Zomato recorded INR 1,222.5 Cr in losses in FY22, 50% higher than INR 816.4 Cr in FY21. Even so, it has continued to back other companies and make acquisitions in unrelated businesses, which has raised eyebrows among the investors.

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