NETWORK18
Micro CapNetwork18 Media & Investments Limited
Financial Services
Network18 Media & Investments Limited is India's largest media powerhouse, operating trusted news brands across TV, digital, and print. It boasts a wide linguistic footprint and a comprehensive product portfolio, including leading English and Hindi news channels, regional news, and digital platforms like Moneycontrol and News18.com.
One read, four checks
75+ is strong, 60-74 is usable, 45-59 is mixed, and below 45 needs caution. These are research lenses, not buy/sell instructions.
Weak fundamentals, management trust needs verification, price trend argues for patience, and recent execution is weak.
Fundamental lens: valuation, quality, growth, balance sheet, and cash flow.
low confidence · 0/0 claims checked
Timing lens: price trend and sector relative strength.
Rolling lens: recent quarterly delivery, not the latest single-result score.
Quarter ended 31 Mar 2026
Average · 45/100Rev +10% YoY · margin expansion · +14% QoQ
| Metric | This quarter | YoY | QoQ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ₹616 Cr | +9.8% | +14.3% |
| EBITDA | ₹30 Cr | +57.9% | +200.0% |
| Operating margin | 5.0% | +200 bps | +300 bps |
| PAT | ₹-30 Cr | NDF | NDF |
| PAT margin | -4.9% | +30 bps | -394 bps |
NDF means not disclosed in the current structured filing feed. It is intentionally not treated as zero.
Where growth can come from, and what can break the case
Q1FY26 revenue declined 4% YoY due to a high base from election-linked revenue, while EBITDA improved to Rs. 4 cr from Rs. 2 cr YoY, amidst a weak advertising environment.
The company's standalone revenue saw a YoY decline in Q1FY26, attributed to a high base and a weak advertising environment. While EBITDA improved marginally, the flat subscription revenue over the last five years raises concerns about monetizing its extensive digital reach and market dominance. The thesis is under stress due to revenue pressures and challenges in a critical revenue stream.
Digital News Platforms
Moneycontrol is India’s No.1 ‘Fintelligence’ platform with 70 MN+ monthly unique visitors. News18.com and Firstpost offer a full suite of digital news platforms.
Subscription-Based Services
Moneycontrol Pro has 10L+ paying subscribers. New premium products like CNBC TV18 Access and Moneycontrol Super Pro are being built.
Regional Market Dominance
Strong positions in Marathi (#1), Gujarati (#1), Bengali (#2), Kannada (#2), and most state-focused Hindi channels are among the top 2.
Strategic Investments
Holds 6.3% stake in JioStar, 39% in BookMyShow, and 24.5% in Eenadu TV, some of India’s biggest media brands.
New-Age Product Launches
Introduced CNBC TV18 Access, Moneycontrol Super Pro, and CNBC TV18 Prime, offering exclusive content and actionable insights.
Market Leadership in News
Dominates English Business News (~80% market share), is India’s No.1 English News Channel, and No.1 Hindi News Channel.
Extensive Digital & TV Reach
Boasts ~300 MN monthly digital reach, 150 MN weekly TV reach, and 7 BN+ monthly video views on social platforms.
Strategic Stakes in Key Media Assets
Holds significant stakes in JioStar (6.3%), BookMyShow (39%), and Eenadu TV (24.5%), diversifying its media presence.
Weak Advertising Environment
An overall weak advertising environment over the last few quarters is putting pressure on revenue growth.
Flat Subscription Revenue
Subscription revenue, a critical revenue stream, has been flat over the last 5 years.
High Base Effect on Revenue
Q1FY26 revenue declined 4% YoY on a high base which had election-linked revenue.
Advertising Market Volatility
Revenue growth is sensitive to the 'overall weak advertising environment', indicating reliance on cyclical ad spending.
Stagnant Subscription Growth
Despite significant digital reach, 'subscription revenue, a critical revenue stream, being flat over the period' suggests challenges in monetizing premium content.
What management said, and what results must prove
Issuer guidance and extracted claims are tracked against later reported outcomes. Treat these as management statements, not IndiaPulse forecasts.
The financial data provided spans Q1FY24, Q1FY25, and Q1FY26, making Year-over-Year comparison the most appropriate to assess performance trends across fiscal periods. The company also explicitly references YoY changes and a high base from the prior year.
Monthly Digital Reach
~300 MN (Comscore Total Digital Population Report, Mar-Jun’25)
Weekly TV Reach
150 MN (BARC India, Week 25’25-28’25)
English Business News Market Share
~80% (BARC, Wk 28’25)
Moneycontrol Pro Paying Subscribers
10L+ paying subscribers
Focus on New-Age Products
Management is 'building for tomorrow' with new-age products like CNBC TV18 Access, Moneycontrol Super Pro, and CNBC TV18 Prime for new-age audiences.
Video-First Digital Strategy
News18.com is creating a clear identity for itself as a 'video-first platform with global coverage'.
Numbers and claims to verify in the next filings
| Checkpoint | Current evidence | What to verify next |
|---|---|---|
| Advertising Revenue Growth | Weak advertising environment, Q1FY26 revenue declined 4% YoY. | Signs of recovery in advertising spending and its impact on revenue growth. |
| Subscription Revenue Growth | Flat over the last 5 years. | Growth in paying subscribers for Moneycontrol Pro and uptake of new premium subscription products. |
| EBITDA Margin | EBITDA of Rs. 4 cr in Q1FY26. | Sustained positive EBITDA and expansion of operating margins as advertising environment improves or new revenue streams scale. |
Verification checkpoints are IndiaPulse research interpretation, not investment advice.
Trend score and candlestick chart
41NeutralSMA20 -15.2% / mo · near 52W low
Technical chart
NETWORK18daily · 1Y-31.6%Technical trend read
Mixed signalsSignals are conflicting — long-term trend unclear. RSI 50. Wait for confirmation.
- SMA20 falling (~10.5% over last month) — short-term momentum negative.
- RSI(14) at 50 — rising, no extreme reading.
- MACD above signal but histogram contracting — bullish momentum cooling.
- 34% off 52W high · 17% above 52W low.
Mechanical read from the price + indicator series above. Not a recommendation — technical setups can reverse without warning, especially around earnings and macro events.
Valuation, score drivers, trust methodology, financials, and peers
Use these sections after reviewing the decision summary, latest result, thesis, management accountability, and technical timing above.
Fundamental score breakdown
OVERVALUEDWhy this score?
Top U-Score contributors and drags from the latest stored fundamentals.
Positive drivers
- Cash flow contributes 3/10 to the score.
- Balance sheet contributes 4/15 to the score.
- Growth contributes 6/25 to the score.
Main drags
- Fair-value margin of safety is negative at -202.5%.
- Quality is weaker at 0/20; verify the latest quarterly trend.
- Valuation is weaker at 3/30; verify the latest quarterly trend.
Blended valuation: PE, EV/EBITDA, FCF yield, and balance-sheet checks
For this sector, IndiaPulse uses a blended lens rather than relying on a single valuation ratio.
Stored run vs live recompute
This shows the stored score trend when snapshots exist, and also compares the latest stored nightly score with a live recompute from current fundamentals and price.
Score history
12 stored score snapshots. Latest stored move: +0 points.
Factor attribution
Trust asks: does management behaviour match later outcomes? Higher is better, but confidence and evidence depth matter as much as the number.
Weak Trust: Claim history is still being built. It ranks around the 4th percentile of the scored universe and 8th percentile within Financial Services. Main check: financial discipline is weak at 32/100.
Mixed Trust Lite: Promoter pledge is zero. Key concern: Operating cash flow is negative at ₹-28 Cr.
Management or financial behaviour needs caution. Demand stronger valuation compensation.
overall median 67 · Financial Services: 8th pctile, median 62 · Micro: 2nd pctile, median 71
0 documents indexed, but claim history is not strong enough yet.
0 claims extracted · No contradicted claim yet
How to read this Trust Score
Weak Trust · low confidenceRead Trust alongside U-Score, result consistency, and technical trend. A cheap stock with weak Trust needs a larger margin of safety; a high Trust score does not make an expensive stock attractive by itself.
Forensic breakdown
Read low sub-scores as due-diligence warnings, not automatic sell signals.
Trust positives
- ▸Promoter pledge is zero.
- ▸5 years of positive FCF.
Trust risks
- ▸Operating cash flow is negative at ₹-28 Cr.
- ▸Promoter holding is only 3%.
- ▸Interest coverage is 0.2x.
- ▸ROCE is low at 3%.
Trust Lite uses financial behaviour only. Prefer claim-tested Trust when enough concall claims have later outcomes.
Intrinsic value
Fundamentals
Valuation
- P/E
- 134.00
- P/B
- 1.00
- EV/EBITDA
- 46.40
- Market Cap
- 4925.00Cr
Profitability
- ROE
- 0.76%
- ROCE
- 3.02%
- ROA
- 1.72%
- Dividend Y
- —
Growth (CAGR)
- Revenue 5Y
- -15.00%
- EPS 5Y
- 3.00%
- Revenue 3Y
- -30.00%
- EPS 3Y
- 35.00%
Balance Sheet
- Debt/Equity
- 0.67
- Interest Coverage
- 0.21×
- Altman Z
- 1.82
- Book Value
- 31.90
Cash Flow
- FCF Yield
- —
- FCF Positive Y
- 5/5
- OCF
- -28.00 Cr
- EPS TTM
- 0.99
Shareholding
- Promoter Hold
- 3.00%
- Promoter Pledge
- 0.00%
- Momentum 52W
- 12%
Financial History
Updated 9/6/2026
Revenue
₹ CrNet Profit
₹ CrReturn on Equity
%Peers
Business-comparable peers in Financial Services — ranked by industry, sub-sector, theme-tag overlap, market cap, and U-Score similarity. Green cells mark the best available peer metric in this table.