New York, Feb 15, 2026, 12:15 EST — The session has ended.
Maplebear Inc, Instacart’s parent, finished Friday at $36.30, climbing 9.2% after its quarterly results and outlook appeared to bolster sentiment just ahead of the holiday break for U.S. markets. (Yahoo Finance)
Stocks struggled for direction in a choppy session. The S&P 500 managed to close slightly higher Friday, but still logged a weekly loss. Investors weighed milder inflation numbers with fresh worries over major tech names. U.S. markets will be shut Monday for Presidents Day. (Reuters)
Instacart projected first-quarter gross transaction value between $10.13 billion and $10.28 billion, with adjusted EBITDA expected in the $280 million to $290 million range. Fourth-quarter GTV climbed 14%, landing at $9.85 billion, and adjusted core profit reached $303 million. Revenue from advertising and other sources rose 10% to $294 million, putting its ads business above the $1 billion mark in 2025. eMarketer’s Blake Droesch called the performance of Instacart’s core business “a promising sign” for the company. (Reuters)
Shares climbed as much as 19% Friday before momentum faded late in the session, with investors shifting focus to competition from DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Amazon’s rapid delivery ambitions. Last year, Instacart dropped the minimum order for Instacart+ to $10. MoffettNathanson’s Michael Morton flagged the challenge of keeping grocery delivery growth in the double digits, calling it “not trivial.” Reuters pointed to Instacart’s forward P/E sitting near 14, in contrast to DoorDash’s roughly 46. (Reuters)
GTV tracks the full dollar amount of goods ordered through the platform—a metric that tends to stay resilient, even as consumers opt for cheaper items. Adjusted EBITDA, on the other hand, is a pared-back profit figure favored by investors for comparing how companies run their core operations.
Bullish investors are eyeing the ads line—it’s right in the middle. Margins here can outpace delivery, and with customers growing fussier about fees, ads hand the company an extra lever.
Still, the dynamic has its risks. If the price war intensifies, smaller “fill-in” baskets may grab more orders, squeezing margins. Amazon’s push for faster delivery and closer retailer alliances threatens to erode share as well.
Markets are closed Monday, set to resume Tuesday. Holiday-week trading often exaggerates swings—liquidity’s light, so moves can look outsized. Traders will see if Friday’s rally sticks when activity picks up.
Coming up: the Fed releases its January meeting minutes Wednesday, with DoorDash set to report earnings after the bell. Walmart’s numbers hit Thursday, while the December PCE inflation data rounds out the week on Friday. (investopedia.com)
