PAYTM
Mid CapOne 97 Communications Limited
Media
Paytm is India's leading payments and financial services distribution company. We build technology that empowers small businesses to grow, and enables consumers to make seamless payments anywhere. Our mission is to bring half a billion Indians into the mainstream economy.
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 is acceptable, 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 +18% YoY · margin expansion
| Metric | This quarter | YoY | QoQ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ₹2,264 Cr | +18.4% | +3.2% |
| EBITDA | ₹132 Cr | +250.0% | -14.8% |
| Operating margin | 6.0% | +1100 bps | -100 bps |
| PAT | ₹183 Cr | NDF | -18.7% |
| PAT margin | 8.1% | +3658 bps | -218 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
FY26 marks Paytm's first full year of profit, with EBITDA improving by ₹2,008 Cr YoY to ₹502 Cr and PAT at ₹552 Cr. Q4 FY26 saw strong revenue growth (+18% YoY reported, +26% YoY comparable) and robust comparable EBITDA growth (+79% QoQ, +₹330 Cr YoY improvement).
Paytm achieved its first full year of profit in FY26, driven by market share gains, expanded payment processing margins, and scaled financial services distribution. Q4 FY26 showed continued organic growth and profitability improvement despite seasonal weakness and regulatory impacts, with management guiding for accelerated revenue growth and margin expansion in FY27.
Revenue from Operations by Segment (Q4 FY26)
Latest issuer-disclosed distribution across 4 reported categories.
Expansion of merchant payments
Sustained GMV and revenue growth, supported by market share gains and expanding payment processing margins.
Structural growth in high-margin merchant loans distribution business
Supported by expanding lender participation, growing device merchant base, and rising penetration.
Consumer lifecycle monetization
Investments in AI-led product innovation are reflecting in market share gains and monetization.
Continued use of AI across the organisation
Revenue and contribution profit are expected to grow meaningfully faster than indirect expenses led by AI applications.
Device Subscriptions
Added 27 lakh net devices YoY, reaching 1.51 Cr subscription merchants.
International Expansion
Incorporated a new wholly owned step-down subsidiary in Indonesia, PT Paytm Indonesia Teknologi, with an investment of ~₹8 Cr.
Expanding Payment Processing Margin
Payment processing margin expanded to >4 bps from >3 bps a year ago, driven by pricing discipline and higher growth of profitable MDR bearing instruments.
High-growth, high-margin Financial Services Distribution
Revenue scaled to ₹2,593 Cr (+52% YoY) in FY26, reflecting a high-growth, high-margin engine.
AI-led Operating Leverage
Revenue growth, increase in contribution margin, discipline on cost and using AI across the organization.
Consumer UPI Market Share Gains
Consumer UPI GTV growth at 2.2x industry levels, gaining market share every month for the last year.
Discontinuation of PIDF scheme
Reported numbers impacted by discontinuation of PIDF scheme; FY26 UPI incentive yet to be finalised.
Lower Other Income from Reinvestment
Other income declined in Q4 FY26 due to reinvestment of maturing investments at lower yields and deployment of PayPay SARs proceeds in lower-yield USD assets.
Regulatory Changes
Impacts from discontinuation of PIDF scheme and UPI incentive finalization, though company claims proactive compliance mitigated some impacts.
ESOP Cost Volatility
ESOP costs expected to increase in Q1 FY27 due to annual appraisal and grant of ESOPs, despite AI-led productivity improvements.
Attrition in Sales Team
Industry trend of high attrition rates in the sales team noted, leading to variability in active working days.
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 company operates in a dynamic, high-growth sector where both sequential momentum (QoQ) and annual growth (YoY) are crucial. Q4 is noted as seasonally weaker, making QoQ comparable growth significant, while YoY shows overall business expansion.
EBITDA (FY26)
₹502 Cr, +₹2,008 Cr YoY
PAT (FY26)
₹552 Cr, +₹1,215 Cr YoY
Revenue (FY26)
₹8,437 Cr, +22% YoY
Merchant GMV (Q4 FY26)
₹6.5 L Cr, +27% YoY
FY27 Outlook
Revenue growth expected to accelerate, higher than 22% delivered in FY26, with further EBITDA margin expansion.
Indirect Expenses Growth
Indirect expenses expected to grow significantly slower than revenue, ensuring continued operating leverage.
Asset-light Financial Services Model
Current distribution-only model creates win-win partnerships, ideally suited for scalability with many blue-chip partners, rather than own balance sheet underwriting.
Capital Deployment Strategy
Opportunities for reinvestment in capex, MTF, AI, distribution, talent, and selective inorganic action at the right price, while maintaining dry powder.
Numbers and claims to verify in the next filings
| Checkpoint | Current evidence | What to verify next |
|---|---|---|
| Comparable EBITDA Margin | 5% (Q4 FY26) | Continued expansion in FY27, driven by AI-led operating leverage and payment processing margin. |
| Payment Processing Margin | >4 bps (Q4 FY26) | Continued expansion in FY27, supported by higher growth of MDR bearing instruments and pricing discipline. |
| Financial Services Revenue Growth | +38% YoY (Q4 FY26) | Sustained high growth, driven by expanding lender participation and rising penetration. |
| Indirect Expenses Growth vs. Revenue | Indirect expenses declined 3% YoY (Q4 FY26) while revenue grew 18% YoY reported | Indirect expenses to grow meaningfully slower than revenue in FY27, indicating operating leverage. |
Verification checkpoints are IndiaPulse research interpretation, not investment advice.
Trend score and candlestick chart
42NeutralSMA20 -6.8% / mo
Technical chart
PAYTMdaily · 1Y-19.6%Technical trend read
Mixed signalsSignals are conflicting — long-term trend unclear. RSI 44. Wait for confirmation.
- SMA20 falling (~3.4% over last month) — short-term momentum negative.
- RSI(14) at 44 — rising, no extreme reading.
- MACD below signal but histogram contracting — bearish momentum easing.
- 22% off 52W high · 15% 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
- FCF yield is supportive at 3.6%.
- Growth contributes 15/25 to the score.
- Balance sheet contributes 8/15 to the score.
Main drags
- Fair-value margin of safety is negative at -195.7%.
- Valuation is weaker at 0/30; verify the latest quarterly trend.
- Quality is weaker at 0/20; verify the latest quarterly trend.
Telecom valuation: EV/EBITDA against ARPU, debt, and capex
Telecom needs enterprise-value and cash-flow framing because leverage is structurally important.
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.
Mixed Trust: Claim history is still being built. It ranks around the 38th percentile of the scored universe and 46th percentile within Media. Main check: financial discipline is weak at 40/100.
Healthy Trust Lite: Promoter pledge is zero. Key concern: Operating cash flow is negative at ₹-743 Cr.
Usable, but needs evidence. Treat guidance with a margin of safety.
overall median 67 · Media: 46th pctile, median 64 · Mid: 22nd pctile, median 76
93 documents indexed, but claim history is not strong enough yet.
0 claims extracted · No contradicted claim yet
How to read this Trust Score
Mixed 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.
- ▸FCF yield is positive at 3.6%.
- ▸Debt/equity is 0.01.
- ▸4/4 latest quarters had positive YoY revenue growth.
Trust risks
- ▸Operating cash flow is negative at ₹-743 Cr.
- ▸ROCE is low at 5%.
- ▸ROE is low at 4.7%.
- ▸1 of the latest 4 quarters had PAT decline worse than 25% YoY.
Trust Lite uses financial behaviour only. Prefer claim-tested Trust when enough concall claims have later outcomes.
Intrinsic value
Fundamentals
Valuation
- P/E
- 90.60
- P/B
- 4.13
- EV/EBITDA
- 62.03
- Market Cap
- 66051.00Cr
Profitability
- ROE
- 4.70%
- ROCE
- 5.01%
- ROA
- 2.31%
- Dividend Y
- —
Growth (CAGR)
- Revenue 5Y
- 25.00%
- EPS 5Y
- 20.00%
- Revenue 3Y
- 2.00%
- EPS 3Y
- 34.00%
Balance Sheet
- Debt/Equity
- 0.01
- Interest Coverage
- 27.78×
- Altman Z
- 6.62
- Book Value
- 250.00
Cash Flow
- FCF Yield
- 3.59%
- FCF Positive Y
- 2/5
- OCF
- -743.00 Cr
- EPS TTM
- 8.64
Shareholding
- Promoter Hold
- —
- Promoter Pledge
- 0.00%
- Momentum 52W
- 33%
Financial History
Updated 9/6/2026
Revenue
₹ CrNet Profit
₹ CrReturn on Equity
%Peers
Business-comparable peers in Media — 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.