Landmark Cars puts Rs 983.92 crore MBIL sales on agency basis

Landmark Cars Limited disclosed Rs 983.92 crore of Mercedes-Benz India Private Limited car sales on which it recognised commission, rather than full vehicle revenue, in the half year ended 30 September 2026. The value rose from Rs 850.781 crore a year earlier as Mercedes-Benz India Private Limited remained the direct seller of all new cars under the agency arrangement.

How does Landmark Cars’ Mercedes-Benz agency model work?

Landmark Cars earns commission on new Mercedes-Benz cars ordered through it because Mercedes-Benz India Private Limited, or MBIL, sells those vehicles directly to customers. The company said its dealership agreement with MBIL had materially changed into an agency model, under which customers place orders through Landmark Cars directly with MBIL.

The accounting effect is that Landmark Cars does not recognise the full value of these new-car transactions as revenue. Its consolidated disclosure identifies Rs 983.92 crore as the value of cars sold by the parent and Landmark Cars (East) Private Limited on MBIL’s behalf in the six months ended 30 September 2026, with only commission income recognised.

This distinction matters when comparing vehicle activity with reported income. Landmark Cars reported consolidated income from operations of Rs 2,753.966 crore for the half year ended 30 September 2026, but the filing says the Rs 983.92 crore MBIL vehicle value is not recorded in that line at its gross amount. The filing does not disclose the commission rate or the commission income earned from these sales.

How much MBIL vehicle value did Landmark Cars transact?

Landmark Cars transacted Rs 983.92 crore of MBIL cars on a commission basis in the half year ended 30 September 2026, up Rs 133.139 crore from Rs 850.781 crore in the corresponding half year of 2025. The comparison measures the disclosed value of vehicles sold, not the commission revenue received by Landmark Cars.

The consolidated September 2026 quarter value was Rs 529.057 crore, compared with Rs 454.863 crore in the June 2026 quarter and Rs 474.076 crore in the September 2025 quarter. Therefore, the value rose Rs 74.194 crore sequentially and Rs 54.981 crore year on year, based on gross cars transacted for MBIL.

Landmark Cars’ standalone half-year vehicle value was Rs 848.259 crore, Rs 135.661 crore below the consolidated figure. The consolidated disclosure includes Landmark Cars (East) Private Limited, while the standalone disclosure covers Landmark Cars alone. The filing separately reported Rs 454.148 crore for the standalone September 2026 quarter and Rs 394.111 crore for the June 2026 quarter.

Why should Landmark Cars’ reported revenue be read differently?

Landmark Cars’ income from operations does not capture the full value of every new Mercedes-Benz car sold through its network because MBIL is the direct seller. The agency-model disclosure is therefore a separate measure of vehicle transaction activity, while reported income includes only commission on these MBIL sales.

Consolidated income from operations increased to Rs 2,753.966 crore in the half year ended 30 September 2026 from Rs 2,272.637 crore a year earlier. That Rs 481.329 crore increase cannot be directly compared with the Rs 983.92 crore MBIL agency vehicle value, because the latter is gross transaction value and Landmark Cars records only commission from it.

The same issue applies to the parent-company results. Landmark Cars reported standalone revenue from operations of Rs 397.734 crore for the six months to 30 September 2026, against Rs 354.153 crore a year earlier, while separately disclosing Rs 848.259 crore of MBIL cars sold on a commission basis. These figures describe different measures and should not be added together.

Landmark Cars reports one business segment, dealership of cars, under Indian Accounting Standard 108, and said all operations are undertaken in India. The filing does not provide a brand-level split of consolidated income, a separate MBIL commission-income amount, or a split between new-car, after-sales and commission revenue. Those omissions prevent calculation of a commission take rate from the disclosed Rs 983.92 crore vehicle value.

What did Landmark Cars report alongside the agency disclosure?

Landmark Cars reported consolidated profit before tax of Rs 43.683 crore for the half year ended 30 September 2026, compared with Rs 10.493 crore in the year-earlier period. Consolidated profit for the period was Rs 33.034 crore, up from Rs 8.868 crore, although the filing does not attribute the change specifically to MBIL agency commissions.

For the September 2026 quarter, consolidated income from operations was Rs 1,451.608 crore, compared with Rs 1,302.358 crore in June 2026 and Rs 1,210.917 crore in September 2025. Profit for the period was Rs 18.488 crore in the September 2026 quarter, versus Rs 14.546 crore in the preceding quarter and Rs 1.502 crore a year earlier.

The group recorded an exceptional item of Rs 49.1 lakh in the September 2026 quarter and half year. Landmark Cars said this was the net impact of discarding immovable property while relocating a Mumbai Mercedes-Benz workshop for strategic advantage. Profit before tax after that exceptional item was Rs 43.683 crore for the half year.

On a standalone basis, Landmark Cars reported profit before tax of Rs 41.504 crore in the six months ended 30 September 2026, up from Rs 20.465 crore in the prior-year period. Standalone profit for the period rose to Rs 32.635 crore from Rs 15.857 crore. The filing does not identify how much of either profit figure came from MBIL commissions.

What could change in Landmark Cars’ reporting structure?

Landmark Cars has proposed to amalgamate Landmark Cars (East) Private Limited with the parent company. Its board considered and approved the scheme on 26 May 2026, and the company said on 12 November 2026 that the scheme had been filed with the relevant bench of the National Company Law Tribunal, or NCLT.

Under the proposed scheme, Landmark Cars’ equity shares in Landmark Cars (East) Private Limited would be cancelled because the subsidiary is wholly owned. No Landmark Cars shares would be issued and no cash would be paid for the cancellation. This is relevant because the consolidated Rs 983.92 crore MBIL agency figure includes that subsidiary, whereas the standalone Rs 848.259 crore figure does not.

The scheme remains subject to regulatory conditions and NCLT sanction. Until then, the filing continues to distinguish between the parent’s standalone MBIL vehicle value and the consolidated value that includes Landmark Cars (East) Private Limited. The disclosed difference was Rs 135.661 crore for the half year ended 30 September 2026.

Conclusion

Landmark Cars’ disclosure shows that Rs 983.92 crore of MBIL new-car transactions in the half year ended 30 September 2026 should be viewed as agency-model vehicle value rather than Landmark Cars revenue. The value increased from Rs 850.781 crore a year earlier, while the group’s reported income from operations included only commission from those MBIL sales.

The next disclosed matter to watch is the NCLT decision on the proposed amalgamation of Landmark Cars (East) Private Limited, for which sanction was awaited on 12 November 2026. Future filings may also clarify the revenue effect if Landmark Cars discloses a separate MBIL commission-income amount or commission rate.