1. At a Glance – The TRP Chart Nobody Wanted
Once upon a time, Zee was India’s loudest remote control bully. Today, it’s the guy asking, “Volume thoda badha dena?”
As of Q3 FY26, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) is sitting at a market cap of ₹8,134 Cr with a current price of ₹85.1—down ~19% in three months and ~28% over one year. This is what long-term underperformance looks like when it wears HD makeup.
Latest quarter highlights (Dec 2025):
- Revenue: ₹2,280 Cr (+15.2% YoY)
- PAT: ₹155 Cr (-29.6% YoY)
- EPS: ₹1.62
- Operating Margin: 11%
- ROCE: 9.21%
- Debt: ₹286 Cr (almost debt-free, but reputation not free)
Stock trades at 0.71x book value and ~14.2x P/E, which screams “cheap”… until you realise earnings growth has been on vacation since 2018 and never sent a postcard.
So the big question—Is this a turnaround story or just another rerun?
Let’s roll the tape.
2. Introduction – Previously on Zee Entertainment…
Zee is not just a company; it’s a case study in Indian capitalism with dramatic background music. Founded in 1982 by Subhash Chandra, it grew into India’s largest TV network, broadcasting in 11 languages, reaching 859 million viewers, and flexing content muscles across TV, movies, music, OTT, and live events.
But then came the plot twist.
Promoter debt.
Pledged shares.
Governance allegations.
SEBI investigations.
Sony merger collapse.
Basically, everything except “All is well.”
The company that once dictated ad rates started defending itself in courtrooms. Market cap halved. Promoter holding collapsed from 41.5% (2018) to 3.99% (FY26). Subhash Chandra exited. Punit Goenka resigned as MD in Nov 2024.
Yet, Zee didn’t die.
It survived.
And in Q3 FY26, it even showed some operational life.
Is
this the calm after the storm—or just the interval?
3. Business Model – WTF Do They Even Do?
Imagine Netflix, Spotify, Star Plus, and a wedding DJ had a complicated child. That’s Zee.
Broadcasting (The Old Lion Still Roars)
Zee runs 50 TV channels across entertainment, movies, regional, and niche genres. It holds ~16.9% entertainment viewership share, making it India’s No.1 entertainment network by reach.
Southern India contributes 57% of FY24 viewership—a crucial hedge against Hindi-market saturation.
Digital – ZEE5 (The Costly Gym Membership)
Launched in 2018, ZEE5 offers:
- 3,600+ movies
- 1,600+ TV shows
- 300+ originals
- 500,000+ hours of content in 12 languages
But profitability? Still warming up. Originals burn cash faster than TRP judges burn contestants.
Movies – ZEE Studios
Produces theatrical + OTT films. In 9MFY25, ZEE5 released 14 titles, including originals like Mithya S2 and Dharamveer 2. Hit-or-miss economics.
Music – Zee Music Company (Silent Cash Cow)
Second-largest music label in India:
- 14,000+ songs
- 22 languages
- 149 million YouTube subscribers
- 165 billion views
If Zee were a thali, music is the chutney—small, but surprisingly valuable.
4. Financials Overview – Numbers Don’t Lie, But They Roast
Result Type Detected: Quarterly
