Hiring to drive Info Edge stock performance; realty vertical to aid growth

The upside trigger for the stock could be a valuation upgrade for the investments the company has made in various segments

The Info Edge stock has been under pressure due to stress on its classified jobs vertical, Naukri, which accounts for 70 per cent of the company’s revenue. The stock has lost 13 per cent since the beginning of the year. 

Revenue from the recruitment segment in the March quarter was up only 3.6 per cent on a sequential basis (12 per cent over a year). The segment level margins fell 243-413 basis points (bps) to 51.8 per cent on a sequential and on year-on-year (y-o-y) basis. 

Given the slowing in information technology (IT) service hiring, customer acquisition is becoming challenging. Billing growth