'Buy' Or 'Sell': Analysts tracking Zee Entertainment divided on the road ahead after Q1 results

Shares of Zee Entertainment Enterprises were trading with losses on Tuesday, August 11, as analysts tracking the stock were split right down the middle on whether to recommend buying or selling the stock after its June quarter results.

The most bullish among the 15 analysts who track Zee Entertainment, is CLSA, whose price target of ₹125 is also a recent high that the stock made, and implies an upside potential of 32.4% for the stock.

On the flip side, Citi is the most bearish with its "sell" rating coming with a price target of ₹80, indicating a downside potential of 15% from current levels.

Seven out of the 15 analysts tracking Zee Entertainment have a "buy" rating on the stock, while six have a "sell" rating.

CLSA

The brokerage has an "outperform" rating on Zee Entertainment with a target price of ₹125 per share.

It said the company's first quarter consolidated revenue of ₹1,900 crore was up 5% from last year but below estimates with ad revenue declining 11%.
Its subscriptions revenue increased 16% from the previous fiscal and 11% from the prior quarter with FIFA 2026 and OTT and Zee5 ramp up.

The company's margin contracted sharply with an increase in programming expense due to FIFA and higher advertisement and promotion (A&P) spending with the launch of sports channels.

Citi

The brokerage has a "sell" rating and a target price of ₹80 apiece.

It said the first quarter revenue growth was supported by strong subscription growth (up 16%) and continued momentum in digital (Zee5 revenue rising 58%). However, the ad revenue trajectory remained a key concern as it declined 11% amid macro weakness, Citi said.

While the management highlighted improving trends in June and it remains optimistic heading into the festive season, the brokerage remains watchful and believes a sustained recovery in advertising revenues is critical for meaningful margin expansion.

Return to sports via FIFA and other football properties could be strategically positive, having aided subscriber additions, viewership gains and advertiser engagement. However, profitability and scalability of these investments remains to be seen, Citi said.

Despite the improving network share and another profitable quarter for Zee5, its consolidated EBITDA margin declined to 4.1% due to elevated content and marketing investments.

Motilal Oswal

The brokerage has a "neutral" rating and a target price of ₹100 per share on Zee Entertainment.

It said the company delivered another subdued quarter, with its ad revenue declining 11.5% from last year and EBITDA fell 65%, despite robust 16% growth in subscription revenue.

Zee5 delivered robust 58% revenue growth with adjusted EBITDA profitability for the third consecutive quarter, it said. However, the company continued decline in linear TV profitability which takes the sheen of Zee5's turnaround.

The management remains cautiously optimistic of recovery in ad revenue, with an improving macro economic outlook ahead of the upcoming festive season and interventions selective re-entry into sports, forays in to kid entertainment, micro drama, Motilal Oswal said.

The full benefit of the FIFA subscription packs, along with the related content costs, should be reflected in the second quarter, Motilal Oswal said. It has cut Zee Entertainment's FY27 and FY28 estimates by 24% and 14%, respectively, driven by subdued ad environment and higher content investments.

Shares of Zee Entertainment are trading 2.2% lower on Tuesday after the results announcement at ₹92.3. The stokc is down 9% over the last one month.

Also Read: Stocks To Buy: Here's why Kotak recommends buying this new listing for 24% upside