New Delhi, Oct. 13 -- Avenue Supermarts Ltd's muted September quarter (Q2FY26) earnings growth should ensure its shares remain range-bound in the foreseeable future.

Avenue, which owns and operates the DMart supermarket chain, faced continuous pressure on its standalone Ebitda margin, which contracted 28 basis points year-on-year to 7.58%. The quantum of Q2 Ebitda margin drop is the lowest in the past four quarters, so the trend is worth tracking ahead. Ebitda is short for earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.

Higher staff costs and other expenses dragged down Q2 margin. Thus, Ebitda grew 11% to Rs.1,230 crore. While growth is better than Q1's 7.6%, it's not encouraging. Competition in the quick-commerce sector...