Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Limited (IRCTC) Q3 FY26 Earnings Call Summary

Summary

Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation Limited - Q3 FY 2026 Earnings Call Summary Friday, February 13, 2026, 16:00 IST

Event Participants

Executives 4 Manoj Kumar Sharma (Director, Catering Service), Rahul Himalian (Director, Tourism and Marketing), Sanjay Kumar Jain (Chairman and Managing Director), Sudhir Kumar (Director, Finance and CFO)

Analysts 4 Athif (Individual Investor), Harsh Yadav (Dolat Capital), Jinesh Joshi (PL Capital), Rahul Jain (Dolat Capital)

Financials & KPIs

Geographic & Segment Commentary

• Internet Ticketing: Dominates the market with an 89% share of total reserved railway bookings in India. The segment is shifting focus toward non-convenience revenue (ads, marketing, loyalty), which grew 26% YoY to ₹150 crores.
• Catering: Growth was fueled by the addition of 40 new trains (including 19 Vande Bharat sets). Margins are slightly lower in this segment due to the 5% GST impact on Vande Bharat billing and specific license fee structures.
• Tourism: Segment margins improved to 19% due to a better product mix. Maharaja Express revenue grew 39% (₹53.14 crores), while State Tirth and Bharat Gaurav grew 51% (₹118.91 crores).
• Rail Neer: Currently meets 50-60% of total railway demand. Management is doubling capacity at Danapur and Ambernath plants to capture untapped market share.

Company-Specific & Strategic Commentary

• Payment Aggregator License: Received in-principle approval from RBI; final documentation submission is extended to August 2026. This initiative aims to transition the payment business from arithmetical to geometric growth.
• Capacity Expansion: Board sanctioned 4 new greenfield Rail Neer plants (Mysore, Prayagraj, Bhagalpur, Ranchi). This will increase total capacity by 25-30% within the next 1.5 years.
• Digital & Data Strategy: Developing a “Unified Portal” to cross-sell travel services (hotels, flights, packages) to the 1.6 million daily ticketing users. All data monetization will strictly comply with DPDP guidelines.
• Vande Bharat Expansion: The Ministry of Railways plans to introduce 260 Vande Bharat train sets. IRCTC expects these prepaid-model trains to provide better volume predictability and revenue share compared to postpaid trains.

Guidance & Outlook

Risks & Constraints

Q&A Highlights

Catering Margins

• Question: Why did the catering segment see a margin impact despite high growth? (Jinesh Joshi)
• Answer: Vande Bharat billing increased by ₹70 crores, but these “prepaid” models involve higher GST (5%) and different license fee structures compared to traditional mail trains (Sanjay Kumar Jain).

Digital Ticketing Metrics

• Question: Can you provide the breakdown of ticket volumes and UPI share? (Jinesh Joshi)
• Answer: Average daily ticket bookings reached 14.64 lakhs (vs 13.59 lakhs YoY). UPI share increased to 50.18% from 46.86% in the previous year (Sanjay Kumar Jain).

Rail Neer Capacity

• Question: What is the timeline for the new greenfield projects? (Kashish Mehta)
• Answer: Capacity is being doubled at Danapur and Ambernath; 4 new plants (Mysore, Prayagraj, Bhagalpur, Ranchi) will add 25-30% capacity over the next 18 months (Sanjay Kumar Jain).

E-Catering Competition

• Question: Is the integration of Swiggy/Zomato cannibalizing onboard sales? (Harsh Yadav)
• Answer: No, both are growing. Standard catering (meals) and e-catering (variety) are complementary; e-catering grew by 25% this quarter (Sanjay Kumar Jain).

Key Takeaway

IRCTC delivered a record-breaking performance in Q3 FY26, with revenue rising 18.2% to ₹1,449 crores and PAT growing 15.5% to ₹394 crores. The quarter was characterized by robust growth in the Catering and Tourism segments, supported by the introduction of 40 new trains and the surging popularity of Bharat Gaurav and Maharaja Express tours. While the revenue mix shift toward catering slightly moderated EBITDA margins to 32.1%, the Internet Ticketing segment remains a high-margin powerhouse (85% EBITDA margin), now processing 89% of India’s reserved rail tickets. Strategically, the company is pivoting toward non-convenience revenue streams and expanding its Rail Neer capacity by 25-30% to meet unmet demand. With the Ministry of Railways’ pipeline for 260 Vande Bharat trains and IRCTC’s upcoming Unified Portal for cross-selling, management maintains a positive outlook for 15% sustainable growth, provided it successfully navigates the transition to its own payment aggregator platform and manages the inflationary impacts of new labor regulations.