Green signal: Zomato investors approve Blinkit deal

Among all the voters, about 97% voted in favour of Zomato
to acquire Blinkit (formerly Grofers) for 4,447 crore ($570 million) in an all-stock deal. While 14.6% of the public institutions voted against the deal, 99% of the public non-institutions voted in favour.

After the approval was notified to the stock exchange on Wednesday morning, Zomato’s stock traded in the green and ended the session up 5.52% at Rs 43.95 per share. The stock price
had nosedived over the past two trading sessions as it almost fell 11% on Monday and 14% on Tuesday in intraday trading after the mandatory lock-in period for pre-IPO shareholders expired on Saturday.

Additionally, on Tuesday, Zomato
allotted 4.6 lakh equity shares from its Esop (employee stock option plan) pool at an exercise price of one rupee, according to a disclosure on the BSE.

The Gurugram-based company had a
blockbuster listing on the Indian stock exchanges last year in July, and its shares more than doubled to hit an all-time high of Rs 169.10 on November 16, 2021. Since then its stock price has declined by almost 70%.

Meanwhile, brokerage firm
Jefferies remains bullish on the stock as it believes Zomato’s management has accelerated its journey towards better unit economics. It has a target price of Rs 100 on the stock, indicating an upside of 125%.

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“Blinkit acquisition elongates the path to profitability and despite management guidance on a break-even in food delivery, investors are not giving much benefit of a doubt,” Jefferies wrote in a report. “Night is darkest just before dawn.”