Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) reported its first quarterly profit decline in 10 consecutive quarters during Q4 2026, with net profit falling nearly 9% year-on-year to ₹327 crore compared to ₹358 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. According to reports from LiveMint, the March quarter profit also declined more than 17% sequentially, marking a significant shift from the company's consistent growth trajectory. The Navratna PSU's share price declined around 3% on Wednesday, 27 May following the results announcement, with the stock falling as much as 2.7% intraday to ₹523 per share on BSE.
Despite the profit decline, IRCTC demonstrated strong revenue momentum with revenue from operations rising 15% year-on-year to ₹1,460 crore during the quarter, compared to ₹1,269 crore in the same period of the previous financial year. As reported by LiveMint, the company's EBITDA increased 3.5% to ₹399 crore from ₹385 crore a year ago, though EBITDA margin contracted to 27.3% from 30.4% in the year-ago quarter. The primary challenge came from total expenses rising more than 19% year-on-year to ₹1,080 crore, which impacted overall profitability despite healthy revenue growth across business segments.
The catering segment remained IRCTC's largest business, contributing around 46% of total sales during the quarter with revenue rising nearly 27% year-on-year to ₹671 crore. According to LiveMint, the internet ticketing business, accounting for around 27% of total sales, reported revenue growth of around 5% year-on-year to ₹390 crore. The tourism division showed strong performance with revenue increasing nearly 11% year-on-year to ₹304 crore, while the Rail Neer packaged drinking water business grew slightly over 4% to ₹100 crore. The company's diversified revenue streams helped offset some of the profitability challenges from rising operational costs.
Despite the profit decline, the IRCTC board declared a dividend of ₹0.50 per share amid the challenging quarterly performance. As reported by LiveMint, the PSU stock has been under pressure in recent times, losing over 2% in 1 month, 6.5% in 3 months, 23% in 6 months and 33% in the last 1 year. The railway stock had hit its 52-week high of ₹799.85 in May 2026 and its 52-week low of ₹492.55 in March 2026, reflecting the volatility in investor sentiment following the profit decline after a decade of consistent growth.
