Zomato’s market capitalisation stood at $9.64 billion as the company’s stock
dipped more than 19% to Rs 91 apiece at the close of trade. The stock hit the lower circuit on the BSE as the Sensex logged its biggest daily fall since November and sank by 1,546 points.
In his message to employees, sent around noon, Goyal said valuations can swing and Zomato had no control over this. “This is the thing about stock markets and public companies – valuations can swing massively without any change in the fundamentals of the business depending on macro-economic factors like inflation, interest rates etc … we had no control on our valuation going up from $8 billion in the IPO to $17 billion at our peak, and vice versa now…,” said Goyal in a note sent on the company’s internal chat group, which ET has reviewed.
He added that he has been waiting for a bear market. “Also, let me tell you a secret … I have been waiting for a bear market for a long time now – that is when funding dries up for everyone, and companies with the most solid teams and execution rise to the top,” added Goyal.
He urged employees to focus on execution and delivering value.
“There is an important lesson here for all of us which I want to reiterate – we cannot control the market’s sentiments or the macro economic factors which also significantly impact our valuations. What we do control is our execution and the value we create for our internal and external customers. Focus and execute. In the long term, our stock price, amongst other things, will take care of itself,” added Goyal in his internal communication to employees.
Discover the stories of your interest
While Zomato’s share price continued its fall on Monday, its arch rival Swiggy announced the
close of its $700 million new fundraise led by US asset manager Invesco. The capital infusion valued Swiggy at $10.7 billion, bridging the gap between its private and Zoamto’s public market valuation.
