Pine Labs Ltd. delivered a significant turnaround in its fourth-quarter performance, posting a net profit of ₹59.4 crore compared to losses in previous quarters. According to reports from CNBC TV18, the fintech major's revenue grew 14.7% year-on-year to ₹700.5 crore, though it came in slightly below analyst expectations. The company's sequential profit grew 40% from ₹42.4 crore, reflecting improved operational efficiency and strong quarter-over-quarter momentum.
The company witnessed a significant jump in cash generation, with operating cash flow surging nearly eight-fold to ₹395 crore. As reported by CNBC TV18, Pine Labs' online payments business remained a key growth driver, recording 56% growth during the quarter. International operations contributed around 15% of overall revenue, indicating steady traction in overseas markets and diversified revenue streams. However, the company faced some disruptions in Q4, particularly from chip shortages due to AI applications, which resulted in a backlog of around 2 lakh point-of-sale machines.
Despite the strong earnings update, Pine Labs shares were trading at ₹142.25 on BSE, down 2.67% at 12:45 IST, according to CNBC TV18. The stock has declined 41% so far in 2026, reflecting broader market sentiment toward fintech stocks. Morgan Stanley maintained a 'maintain equal-weight' rating with a target price of ₹245 following the company's Q4 results. Morgan Stanley noted that while Pine Labs' Q4 revenue growth missed consensus estimates by 3%, the brokerage highlighted strong growth in the issuing and acquiring business, improvement in operating leverage, and cash flow conversion in FY26. However, Citi has now maintained a Buy rating on Pine Labs with a target price of ₹235, expecting the guidance to imply over 20% growth with margin expansion driven by operating leverage.
Management has provided optimistic guidance for the near term, with revenue growth projected at 21% to 23.5% in FY27. As reported by CNBC TV18, CEO Ambrish Rau noted that the company has incorporated softness seen in Middle East markets and airline business segments into their guidance. Rau emphasized that the ongoing quarter (Q1) is usually the weakest on a full-year basis, with growth expected toward the lower end of guidance, which should improve in subsequent quarters. The company is doubling down on global markets, especially South East Asia, Africa and West Asia, where it claims to be competing and winning against global players.
Pine Labs is heavily leveraging AI technology, with agents now accounting for 89% of the code generated. The company has partnered with OpenAI to act as a design partner for co-developing AI products tailored for local markets. Additionally, Pine Labs is planning to unveil two new AI-powered products focused on agentic commerce and payments during the upcoming Mumbai Tech Week conference on May 29-30. The company is also launching an employee benefits programme over the next few weeks and quarters to address opportunities for both consumers and corporates.
