Veranda Learning Solutions Limited — Q3 FY26 earnings call

Call held 6 Feb 2026

Management summary

Veranda Learning Solutions Limited delivered a strong Q3 FY26, with revenue growing 52% YoY to INR117 crores and PAT reaching INR17 crores. This performance was underpinned by robust enrolment growth and significant EBITDA margin expansion to 45%. The company is actively progressing its Veranda 2.0 strategy, including the demerger of its commerce vertical and the strategic disinvestment of vocational education assets, while integrating AI for operational efficiencies and expanding its academic footprint.

Highlights

  • Revenue from operations in Q3 FY'26 rose 52% year-on-year to INR117 crores.

  • Gross profit up 47% year-on-year to INR76 crores, driving gross margin of 65% (from 62%).

  • EBITDA surged 328% year-on-year to INR53 crores, with EBITDA margins expanding to 45%.

  • PAT increased to INR17 crores in Q3 FY'26, marking the fourth consecutive PAT positive quarter.

  • Student enrolments increased to 111,363, up 55% year-on-year, driving collections growth of 46% to over INR144 crores.

Key financials

3 periods

Headline

  • Student Enrolments
    1,11,363
    YoY +55%
  • Collections Growth
    46%
  • Current Debt
    ₹222 Cr
  • Average Interest Rate on Debt
    17%

Q3 FY26

  • Revenue from Operations
    ₹117 Cr
    YoY +52%
  • Gross Profit
    ₹76 Cr
    YoY +47%
  • Gross Margin
    65%
  • EBITDA
    ₹53 Cr
    YoY +328%
  • EBITDA Margin
    45%
  • PAT
    ₹17 Cr

9M FY26

  • Revenue
    ₹350 Cr
    YoY +29%
  • EBITDA
    ₹150 Cr
    YoY +409%
  • PAT
    ₹114 Cr

What they filed

Q1 FY27: revenue up 41.5%, net profit up 466.7% against the same quarter last year.

₹ Cr · quarterly
Line itemQ2 FY25Q3 FY25Q4 FY25Q1 FY26Q2 FY26Q3 FY26Q4 FY26Q1 FY27
Revenue106 99 87 106 127 +20%117 +18%132 +52%150 +42%
EBITDA28 -33 18 32 46 +64%38 +215%47 +161%52 +63%
Net profit-32 -203 8 6 96 +400%13 +106%16 +100%34 +467%
How to read this

₹ crore, as filed. The percentage beside a figure is the change against the same quarter a year earlier — never the quarter before, which would make every seasonal business look like it collapses and booms each year.

Capital allocation

high confidence
  • Capex Capex disclosed
    • Expand academic footprint by adding 10 to 15 managed colleges
    So certain amount of investments will happen in growth. Also, we are ensuring that when subsequently the residual stakes are being bought out in some of these businesses, the company expects to do all of the residual purchases through internally accrued and generated cash, rather through additional leverage or equity dilution. So some cash is being set aside for purchase of residual stake. Some cash is going to be used to drive our expansion, especially in the commerce vertical.
  • Debt Gross ₹222 Cr Cost 17%
    • Refinance Refinancing existing debt with high-cost debt at 17.23% to a new rate of less than 10% ₹140 Cr
    Our balance sheet remains strong with existing debt of INR222 crores at an average interest rate of 17% as on date. And there have been steps in refinancing being taken, which will be seen in the ongoing quarters.
  • M&A J.K. Shah Commerce Education Limited Demerger · Pending regulatory

    Unlock long-term shareholder value through the creation of a focused and scalable commerce education platform.

    As part of the Veranda 2.0 strategy, as we had outlined consistently in many calls before, we have advanced the demerger of our commerce vertical as planned. Following receipt of NOC from the stock exchanges and with no observations clearance from SEBI, the scheme has now been filed with NCLT. This step is intended to unlock long-term shareholder value through the creation of J.K. Shah Commerce Education Limited, a focused and scalable commerce education platform.
  • M&A SNVA Veranda Divestment · Closed

    Transform vocational portfolio into a globally scaled equity partnership, combining domestic scaling brands with international university network.

    Projected to generate over INR250 crores in revenue by FY '27, growing at a 25% CAGR with EBITDA exceeding INR60 crores.

    We have also successfully created SNVA Veranda through the strategic disinvestment of our vocational education assets. This transaction combines Veranda's strong domestic scaling brands with SNVA's international university network across the U.S., U.K., Europe and Singapore. The platform enables seamless global learner pathways, enhances employability-focused education in emerging domains and accelerate scale towards 200,000-plus learners annually. The entity is projected to generate over INR250 crores in revenue by FY '27, growing at a 25% CAGR with EBITDA exceeding INR60 crores, and it will pursue a separate public listing over time.

Guidance & targets

Profitability

  • Profitability Profitability · Annual · High confidence INR75 crores
    So with the current numbers, Harshal, I think we'll be at the track to achieve the guidance. Upside is not the upside will always be there, but we stick to our guidance numbers.

    — Mohasin Khan

  • Overall EBITDA Profitability · FY26 · High confidence INR280-300 crores
    And in the current, same with vocational also being part of our revenue structure, we are expecting the numbers to reach INR850 crores to INR900 crores and EBITDA of almost INR280 crores to INR300 crores bottom line.

    — Mohasin Khan

  • SNVA Veranda EBITDA Profitability · FY27 · High confidence Exceeding INR60 crores
    So for FY '27, we expect to be able to reach a top line business of about INR250 crores in SNVA Veranda, and we are targeting an EBITDA in excess of INR60 crores for FY '27.

    — Suresh Kalpathi

  • SNVA Veranda EBITDA for Listing Profitability · Future · Medium confidence INR100 crores+
    our target is to take it for a listing only when it crosses about, at least, INR100 crores of EBITDA as a debt-free business.

    — Suresh Kalpathi

  • Government Test Prep EBITDA Growth Profitability · FY27 · Medium confidence 60% to 65%
    So we expect these measures to potentially drive up our EBITDA in the commerce vertical by about 60% to 65% in FY '27.

    — Suresh Kalpathi

  • K-12 Managed Schools EBITDA Growth Profitability · Next year · Medium confidence 60% to 65%
    So there, again, our EBITDA from the schools -- K-12 managed schools business to significantly move up probably by another 60%, 65% in that segment, too.

    — Suresh Kalpathi

  • J.K. Shah Commerce Education Limited EBITDA Profitability · FY27 · High confidence INR200 crores
    And given its projected EBITDA for FY '27 at INR200 crores could again, potentially could be a $1 billion listing all by itself.

    — Suresh Kalpathi

Revenue

  • Overall Revenue Revenue · FY26 · High confidence INR850-900 crores
    And in the current, same with vocational also being part of our revenue structure, we are expecting the numbers to reach INR850 crores to INR900 crores and EBITDA of almost INR280 crores to INR300 crores bottom line.

    — Mohasin Khan

  • SNVA Veranda Revenue Revenue · FY27 · High confidence Over INR250 crores
    So for FY '27, we expect to be able to reach a top line business of about INR250 crores in SNVA Veranda, and we are targeting an EBITDA in excess of INR60 crores for FY '27.

    — Suresh Kalpathi

Capacity

  • Number of Managed Colleges Added Capacity · Next year · High confidence 10 to 15
    So we are currently working on a plan to add possibly about 10 to 15 managed colleges going into the next year.

    — Suresh Kalpathi

  • Managed Colleges Size Capacity · FY27 · High confidence Double
    For the coming academic year, there is a plan to add another 10 to 15 more, which will literally double our size in FY '27.

    — Suresh Kalpathi

What to watch in Q4 FY26

Demerger of commerce vertical (J.K. Shah Commerce Education Limited)

By April (NCLT approval), June (listing/trading)
Current Filed with NCLT, seeking lender NOCs
Target NCLT approval, listing/trading

Why it matters

Completion of this major strategic restructuring is key to unlocking shareholder value and clarifying the company's future structure.

the attempt would be to get the approval from NCLT if we can before end of April, and possibly start work on the listing and trading permissions and the hope will be to get this listed and traded sometime in June of this year.

Q&A highlights

6 direct
Demerger timeline and progress Direct
the attempt would be to get the approval from NCLT if we can before end of April, and possibly start work on the listing and trading permissions and the hope will be to get this listed and traded sometime in June of this year.

Provides a clear timeline for a major strategic restructuring event.

Asked by Harshal Mehta

Confidence in profitability guidance and potential upside revision Partial
So with the current numbers, Harshal, I think we'll be at the track to achieve the guidance. Upside is not the upside will always be there, but we stick to our guidance numbers.

Clarifies management's stance on achieving existing profitability targets without upward revision.

Asked by Harshal Mehta

Opportunities from Union Budget 2026, specifically Corporate Mitra for MSMEs Direct
So given our strong presence in this vertical across online, offline and the academic segment, we expect to play a significant part. ... this will help us significantly expand our reach and I think leverage especially our online and our offline centers spread throughout the country.

Highlights a potential new growth avenue and market expansion strategy driven by government policy.

Asked by Harshal Mehta

Reinvestment strategy for surplus cash post-demerger and divestment Direct
currently we want to sort of deploy it quite significantly to as quickly as possible deleverage the organization so that at some point we make it debt-free. Having said that, there is a plan to expand our academic footprint. So we are currently working on a plan to add possibly about 10 to 15 managed colleges going into the next year.

Outlines the company's capital allocation priorities, focusing on debt reduction and strategic growth.

Asked by Deepesh J

Growth strategy for non-commerce businesses post-demerger Direct
Next year, we also plan to launch our online programs in both Telugu and Hindi. This will help us get into Andhra and Telangana and into a significant part of the Hindi heartlands. So we expect these measures to potentially drive up our EBITDA in the commerce vertical by about 60% to 65% in FY '27.

Provides specific details on how the remaining core businesses will drive growth and profitability.

Asked by Deepesh J

AI as an opportunity or challenge and its incorporation into the business Direct
we are approaching this in 2 aspects. One is an opportunity for us to launch courses for our students... On the other side, to get the efficiencies in our operations, we are looking at AI like any other organization.

Addresses a key technological trend and its dual impact on new revenue streams and operational cost efficiencies.

Asked by Deepesh J

Quantifying AI's impact on cost reduction and current AI course revenue Partial
in terms of our AI course revenue, so specifically from our company which is Edureka, which is Brain4ce, under the legal name of Brain4ce, almost about 35% to 40% of our revenue comes through AI courses as of now, which is increasing by every month.

Provides initial data on AI's revenue contribution and acknowledges the nascent stage of quantifying cost savings.

Asked by Deepesh J

Succession planning for Professor J.K. Shah in the demerged commerce entity Direct
He is not 70-plus, but he is 60-plus. He's about 64. Already, there are multiple people in the organization, which is, when I say organization, the commerce vertical, who are being groomed as successors. The professor's son and daughter themselves have been with the organization for the last 7, 8 years, and they are being mentored to take on a significant role over the next 3, 4 years.

Addresses a critical leadership and governance question for the newly formed entity.

Asked by Athar Syed

3 min read 6 chapters

Detailed narrative

Strong Q3 FY26 Financial Performance

Veranda Learning Solutions Limited reported a robust Q3 FY26, with revenue from operations increasing 52% year-on-year to INR117 crores. Gross profit grew 47% year-on-year to INR76 crores, resulting in an improved gross margin of 65% compared to 62% in the prior year. The company achieved a significant 328% year-on-year surge in EBITDA to INR53 crores, with EBITDA margins expanding to 45%, and recorded a PAT of INR17 crores for the quarter. For the 9 months ended December 2025, revenue reached INR350 crores (up 29% YoY) and PAT stood at INR114 crores, underscoring disciplined execution.

Veranda 2.0 Strategy and Demerger Progress

The company is actively executing its Veranda 2.0 strategy, which includes the planned demerger of its commerce vertical into J.K. Shah Commerce Education Limited. The demerger scheme has been filed with NCLT after receiving NOC from stock exchanges and SEBI clearance, with NCLT approval targeted by April 2026 and listing/trading expected by June 2026. This move aims to unlock long-term shareholder value by creating a focused and scalable commerce education platform. Additionally, the strategic disinvestment of vocational education assets into SNVA Veranda has been completed, forming a global platform projected to generate over INR250 crores in revenue and exceeding INR60 crores EBITDA by FY27.

Growth Strategy for Core Verticals Post-Demerger

Post-demerger, Veranda plans robust growth in its remaining core verticals, including government test preparation and academic programs. The government test prep business aims for 60-65% EBITDA growth by FY27 through franchising and launching online programs in Telugu and Hindi to expand into new markets. The K-12 managed schools segment, currently with 5,500 students, is expected to double its number of managed schools next year, also targeting 60-65% EBITDA growth, primarily through an asset-light model with REIT partnerships. Corporate costs are also expected to be significantly reduced post-demerger.

AI Adoption for Operational Efficiency and New Offerings

Veranda is strategically integrating AI both to create new course offerings and to enhance operational efficiencies. New courses in Gen AI and agentic AI, offered through Edureka, currently contribute 35-40% of Edureka's total revenue, a figure that is increasing monthly. Internally, AI is being piloted across various functions such as telecalling, assessments, 24/7 customer support, content generation, and mentorship. While quantification of cost savings is in early stages, the company expects AI to significantly improve customer service, content quality, and overall operational efficiency.

Capital Allocation and Debt Refinancing Initiatives

The company's capital allocation strategy prioritizes deleveraging, expanding its academic footprint, and buying out residual stakes. Existing debt of INR222 crores, with an average interest rate of 17%, is undergoing refinancing. A new loan of INR140 crores is being used to refinance existing high-cost debt, with the new interest rate expected to be less than 10%, which will significantly reduce future finance costs. Furthermore, the company plans to add 10 to 15 managed colleges next year, aiming to double its academic footprint by FY27.

Outlook and Future Targets

Veranda projects a strong closing to FY26, with overall revenue expected to be INR850-900 crores and EBITDA between INR280-300 crores. The demerged J.K. Shah Commerce Education Limited is targeted to achieve INR200 crores EBITDA by FY27, with a potential $1 billion valuation upon listing. SNVA Veranda aims for over INR250 crores revenue and exceeding INR60 crores EBITDA by FY27, with a long-term goal of listing once it achieves INR100 crores+ EBITDA as a debt-free entity. The company remains focused on enhancing faculty capabilities, driving digital admissions, and strengthening partnerships to support robust growth.

This is an AI-generated summary of a publicly available earnings call transcript.
View original transcript

More Consumer Services earnings calls