Shares of Delhivery Limited fell 5.09% to ₹451.55 on the NSE on May 18, 2026, shedding ₹24.20 from a previous close of ₹475.75, even as the company reported what was operationally its strongest quarter since listing — revenue up 26.31% year on year, EBITDA up 80%, Express Parcel shipments surging 73%, and service margins at multi-year highs. The stock touched an intraday low of ₹451 against a day’s high of ₹472.95, with the 52-week range spanning ₹332.30 to ₹490 placing today’s level approximately 8% below the annual peak.
The selloff is a valuation story, not an operational one. And the number that explains it is sitting in plain sight on the screener: P/E ratio of 225.94x.
At 225x trailing earnings, Delhivery is priced for near-perfect execution every single quarter. The stock’s valuation embeds a long-duration growth thesis — Motilal Oswal’s 13%/33% revenue/EBITDA CAGR over FY26-28, sustained 16-18% service EBITDA margins, and continued market share gains from industry consolidation post the Ecom Express integration. Every quarter that delivers on or above those expectations justifies the multiple. Every quarter that misses — even marginally — triggers a disproportionate price reaction because the margin of safety at 225x is essentially zero.
Q4FY26 delivered a miss on the one number that matters most at this valuation: adjusted PAT came in at ₹70.80 crore against Motilal Oswal’s estimate of ₹77.40 crore — a 9% shortfall. Reported net profit of ₹72.39 crore was also marginally below the year-ago ₹72.55 crore, meaning that despite 26% revenue growth and 80% EBITDA growth, net profit was flat year on year. Full-year FY26 consolidated PAT declined 6.81% to ₹152.54 crore from ₹162.11 crore. At a P/E of 225.94x, the market does not forgive a 9% PAT miss regardless of how strong the operational metrics are. It corrects by approximately 5% instead — which is precisely what happened at open on May 18.
The operational picture is, by any measure, genuinely strong. EBITDA rose 80% year on year to approximately ₹210 crore with a 7.5% margin — up 210 basis points year on year and 10 basis points sequentially. Express Parcel shipped 306 million packages — up 73% year on year — after the Ecom Express network integration, with service EBITDA margin at 18.8%. PTL tonnage grew 20% year on year with service margins at 13.5%. The combined transportation business reported a 17.5% service EBITDA margin — the highest in Delhivery’s public company history. New services Delhivery Direct and Rapid are scaling. Management guided for 15-20% annual volume growth and 16-18% service margins to be sustained over the next two years.
Motilal Oswal maintained its Buy rating and ₹580 target price despite the PAT miss — implying 28.5% upside from the current level of ₹451.55 — keeping its FY27 and FY28 EBITDA estimates unchanged. The brokerage’s thesis is that the Ecom Express integration is now complete and the cost absorption phase is over, meaning that Q1FY27 onwards, revenue growth will translate more cleanly to PAT growth without the integration drag.
The market’s reaction on May 18 is not a rejection of that thesis. It is a recalibration of near-term earnings expectations at a valuation that demands perfection. With FY26 full-year PAT declining year on year and the stock at 225x those earnings, every quarter is a test of whether the investment case remains intact — and Q4FY26, with its 9% PAT miss against estimates, was not quite sufficient to pass that test at current prices.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Please consult a SEBI-registered financial advisor before making investment decisions.