DoorDash Posts Record Profit and Agrees to Buy Instacart

The Tip Desk · October 29, 2026 · 4 min read

GAAP net income was $466 million, up 91% from a year earlier, as Marketplace GOV reached $33.9 billion.

DoorDash, Inc. (DASH), the local-commerce delivery platform, reported GAAP net income attributable to common stockholders of $466 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2026, up 91% from a year earlier, reversing a 30% year-over-year decline in the second quarter.

The company said it generated new quarterly records across Marketplace GOV, revenue, and net income. Marketplace GOV increased 36% year-over-year to $33.9 billion, matching the 36% year-over-year rate in the second quarter. Revenue increased 34% year-over-year to $4.6 billion. Total Orders rose 28% year-over-year to 993 million. Excluding Deliveroo, orders, GOV, and revenue each grew 17%, 23%, and 23% year-over-year, respectively.

Adjusted EBITDA increased 41% year-over-year to $1,060 million. Adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of Marketplace GOV rose to 3.1% from 2.8% in the second quarter. Net income as a percentage of Marketplace GOV was 1.4%.

Net revenue margin expanded to 13.6% from 13.5% in the second quarter. GAAP gross profit as a percentage of Marketplace GOV recovered to 6.8% from 6.7%, and contribution profit as a percentage of Marketplace GOV rose to 5.2% from 5.0%. GAAP sales and marketing expense fell 7% sequentially to $765 million and was 2.3% of Marketplace GOV. Research and development expense fell 7% sequentially to $499 million. General and administrative expense fell 21% sequentially to $426 million.

The company said year-over-year growth in U.S. restaurant Marketplace GOV accelerated slightly compared with the second quarter, despite a challenging comparison with strong growth in the third quarter of 2025. On a sequential basis, U.S. restaurant GOV grew faster in the third quarter of 2026 than in any third quarter since the third quarter of 2020. Growth in the U.S. restaurant category was driven by continued year-over-year growth in order rates among mature cohorts and accelerated year-over-year growth in new consumers, the company said. U.S. grocery and retail GOV year-over-year growth remained more than double the pace of U.S. restaurant year-over-year growth.

International marketplaces drove accelerated year-over-year growth in Marketplace GOV, with accelerated year-over-year growth in Total Orders at each international brand. Deliveroo Total Orders grew at twice the year-over-year rate they did in the third quarter of 2025, before the acquisition, the company said. It said international contributions to total profitability exceeded its expectations entering the quarter.

Free cash flow was $787 million. Net cash provided by operating activities was $994 million. Year to date through October 28, the company had repurchased 6.8 million shares of Class A common stock for $1.0 billion under a February 2025 authorization, leaving approximately $4.0 billion remaining.

DoorDash announced a definitive agreement to acquire Instacart for $65.00 a share, or an equity value of approximately $17 billion, payable in at least 75% cash and up to 25% DoorDash common stock. The price represented a 26% premium to Instacart’s closing price on October 22, 2026. The transaction is expected to close at the end of 2027 or in the first half of 2028. DoorDash said it expects to fund the cash portion with cash on hand and debt financing and is targeting a capital structure that will maintain investment-grade ratings. It said it sees a multi-year path to $500 million or more of annual synergies, net of investments, and expects to invest more than 100% of total synergies in the first year after close.

For the fourth quarter of 2026, DoorDash expects Marketplace GOV of $35.4 billion to $36.4 billion and Adjusted EBITDA of $900 million to $1.1 billion. It said 2026 stock-based compensation and depreciation and amortization are each expected to be approximately $1.2 billion, and that year-end timing of merchant payments is expected to reduce reported 2026 free cash flow by $700 million to $800 million. Beginning in the fourth quarter of 2026, the company said it intends to stop disclosing quarterly results excluding Deliveroo.