I R C T C

IRCTC reported a stable and profitable first quarter for FY26, with Profit After Tax (PAT) reaching INR 330 crores, marking a 7.14% year-on-year growth. The company's EBITDA stood at INR 397 crores, an increase of 5.86% compared to the previous year. This performance led to an expansion in EBITDA margin to 34.27% from 33.55% in Q1 FY25, attributed to continued emphasis on cost optimization and effective revenue mix management. Total revenue for the quarter was INR 1,220 crores, up 4.36% YoY, while revenue from operations grew approximately 4% to INR 1,160 crores.

The Internet Ticketing segment continued to be a strong revenue driver, contributing INR 360 crores with a 9.12% year-on-year growth and an EBITDA margin of 84%. The Tourism segment showed impressive growth, with revenue increasing by 21.3% to INR 148 crores and its EBITDA margin improving to 8.7% from 7.6% in the prior year. In contrast, the Catering segment's revenue was slightly lower by 2.15% at INR 547 crores, and Rail Neer revenue remained flat at INR 106 crores.

The slight dip in Catering revenue was primarily due to the absence of the 'election special' business, which generated INR 32 crores in the same quarter last year but only INR 4-5 crores this year. Additionally, the segment is undergoing a transition phase with the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme (ABSS) upgradation, impacting license fee generation from static units. For Rail Neer, despite improved capacity utilization of 87.04% (up from 86.8%), revenue remained flat due to the Bilaspur plant being non-operational (water extraction issues) and a shift to 500ml bottles for Vande Bharat trains, which reduced revenue capture.

The Tourism segment demonstrated robust growth, with management noting a 20% increase in Maharajas' Express bookings. IRCTC plans to add one more Bharat Gaurav rake this financial year and expects 3 to 5 departures for the Golden Chariot. New circuits like 'Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Circuit' and 'Dev Bhoomi Kedarnath Kartik Swami tour' have been introduced, alongside 'Ganga Ramayana Yatra' and 'Bharat-Bhutan Mystic Mountain Yatra', indicating a strong pipeline of new offerings.

The Internet Ticketing segment continues to be highly profitable, with 87.78% of total reserved tickets on Indian Railways now booked through IRCTC's portal. The non-convenience fee portion of this segment grew by 17% year-on-year this quarter. IRCTC is actively pursuing initiatives to further monetize this segment, including floating a tender for sole tendering rights for advertisements, leveraging AI for cross-selling, and developing an integrated OTA platform to enhance its digital offerings.

IRCTC capitalized a new office building worth INR 400 crores, though depreciation is only applied to approximately INR 40 crores, as land is not depreciated. For Rail Neer, the Board has approved expansion for two major plants in Danapur and Ambernath, with others in the pipeline at Prayagraj, Ranchi, Bhagalpur, and Mysuru. The tendering process for these new plants is expected to take over a year. The company is also awaiting a payment aggregation license from RBI, which is projected to take 12 to 18 months to secure after in-principle approval.