Nazara Technologies shares jump over 7% as Q2 revenue rises 65%; reports loss after Moonshine write-off

/ 3 min read
Summary

Nazara Technologies shares rose by over 7% due to strong Q2 FY26, with EBITDA growth of 146.4%. The company achieved ₹526.5 crore in revenue, largely from mobile gaming. Regulatory changes led to strategic adjustments in investment, but Nazara says it continues to focus on building long-term gaming franchises.

Nazara CEO Nitish Mittersain
Nazara CEO Nitish Mittersain | Credits: X @mittersain

Digital entertainment and gaming major Nazara Technologies' share surged over 7% in the opening trade after robust Q2 FY26 results, which saw strong EBITDA growth at 146.4%. Shares opened gap up at ₹256.65 on the BSE and soon hit the day’s high at ₹274, up 6.76%. Shares of Nazara are currently trading below its 52-week high of ₹362.50. At the current share price, its total m-cap stands at ₹10,160 crore.

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The overall rise in Nazara scrip stands at 5.55% in the past week, and 2.83% in the past month. On a six-month basis, its shares, however, are down 7.34%. In the year-to-date period, shares of Nazara are up 10%.

Nazara reported income of ₹1,025.2 crore in H1 FY26, growing 80.2% YoY, and EBITDA of ₹109.4 crore, an increase of 118.5% year-on-year. Core gaming EBITDA margin expanded to 23.2%. In Q2 FY26, the company delivered revenues of ₹526.5 crore, up 65.1% year-on-year, and EBITDA of ₹62.0 crore, growing 146.4% year-on-year. Nazara attributed the growth during the quarter to improving retention, deeper LiveOps engagement, and cross-platform distribution across mobile, console, and PC.

This impairment amount with regards to its investment in PokerBaazi platform operator Moonshine, pushed Q2 Nazara’s standalone loss to  ₹966.95 crore, and its consolidated loss of ₹33.93 crore. For H1 FY26, Nazara recorded a net profit of ₹17.41 crore. In Q1 FY26, Nazara's profit stood at ₹53.46 crore.

The company said its mobile gaming remained the strongest contributor to Nazara’s financials, led by global franchises such as Love Island, Big Brother, Kiddopia, Animal Jam, and WCC, supported by recurring content seasons and strong engagement metrics. 

Nazara said its PC/console publishing business continued to perform steadily through global titles like Human: Fall Flat, alongside incremental gains from catalogue monetisation and platform expansion. Offline interactive entertainment brands Smaaash and Funky Monkeys also delivered profitable growth on standardised centre playbooks, repeat footfall, and expansion.

During the quarter, new regulations in India’s online skill-based real-money gaming space prompted Nazara to record a ₹914.7-crore impairment on its investment in Moonshine Technologies (PokerBaazi) based on fair valuation as per accounting standards. As Moonshine's business was completely hit by the new law, Nazara reduced the carrying amount of this particular investment to ₹96.53 crore as of Q2 FY26. Also, Nazara’s stake in Nodwin Gaming reduced below 50%, resulting in de-subsidiarisation of the business. Consequently, Nazara measured its retained stake in Nodwin Gaming at fair value, leading to a one-time gain. 

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Nitish Mittersain, Joint MD & CEO of Nazara Technologies, said H1FY26, Nazara’s core gaming revenues grew 159% and EBITDA grew 253%, driven by deeper LiveOps engagement, global scale, and strong unit economics across mobile, console, and PC. “We are evolving from publishing individual games to building and scaling long-term franchises. Our Centres of Excellence in UA, Analytics, AI, and Growth are creating portfolio-wide operating leverage.

Mittersain said the accounting adjustments in Q2 FYf26, including the Moonshine impairment and NODWIN fair value gain, are one-time items and do not impact operating cash flows or the momentum of our core business. Last week, as Nazara completed 25 years, it refreshed its brand identity, including a new logo and brand positioning line ‘Enter. Magic’. 

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