New York, Feb 13, 2026, 17:47 EST — Trading after the bell.
- Maplebear shares jumped, ending the day solidly in the green after the Instacart parent projected strong first-quarter volume.
- The company’s results and shareholder letter kept attention on buybacks and the ad business.
- Heading into a Monday market holiday, traders are sizing up stiffer competition in grocery delivery.
Maplebear Inc ended Friday up 9.2% at $36.30. The stock slipped 1.4% to $35.81 after hours, giving back some ground following an earlier spike that sent shares close to $40. (MarketBeat)
This shift is significant: online grocery delivery has proved tough, especially as expansion slows and major competitors loom. Maplebear, doing business as Instacart, delivered an outlook for first-quarter gross transaction value (GTV) above what Wall Street was expecting and also beat fourth-quarter forecasts, driven by a pickup in demand for essentials and stronger ad revenue. (Reuters)
The stock at one point surged 19% during the session as investors bought into management’s pitch that its niche remains defensible, despite tougher competition in groceries. “It is not trivial to sustain double-digit growth in the brutally competitive grocery category,” noted MoffettNathanson Research analyst Michael Morton, flagging pressure from bigger rivals. Maplebear, for now, trades at a lower forward price-to-earnings multiple than delivery peer DoorDash. (Reuters)
Maplebear’s latest SEC filing detailed a 12% bump in fourth-quarter revenue, hitting $992 million, with adjusted EBITDA up 20% to $303 million. Legal and regulatory costs weighed, thanks in part to a $60 million FTC settlement. The company noted $1.4 billion in share buybacks for 2025—$1.1 billion of that happened in the fourth quarter alone. CEO Chris Rogers said they “wrapped up 2025 with real momentum” and plan to keep that trajectory going into 2026. (Securities and Exchange Commission)
The company’s been busy rolling out new partnerships in its app ahead of Valentine’s Day, looking to push shoppers beyond their usual grocery haul. Just this week, it unveiled a deal bringing same-day delivery of Lush products—no markup—from 250 stores in the U.S. and Canada, promising arrivals in as little as an hour. Instacart’s Blake Wallace said the partnership targets “even more convenience” for customers. (Instacart)
The battleground keeps shifting — not only around fees and delivery speed, but technology too. This week, Uber announced plans to introduce an AI-driven “Cart Assistant” for Uber Eats, letting users create grocery carts just by sending text or photo prompts. Users still “stay in full control” after the cart’s built, Uber CTO Praveen Neppalli Naga told Axios. (Axios)
Maplebear’s upbeat outlook eased concerns about competitors grabbing share by saturating the market with low-margin, quick “fill-in” orders. Now, the spotlight shifts to Instacart—can it push volume higher without slicing too deeply into margins, particularly if heavier discounts and loyalty incentives come into play?
But there’s a rougher path too: if ad spending slips, orders tilt toward cheaper items, or legal and regulatory costs spike again, the stock’s rebound after results could just be shorts scrambling to cover—not a genuine shift in sentiment.
Expect some volatility with the long weekend in play. U.S. stock markets shut down Monday, Feb. 16 for Presidents Day; trading picks back up as usual Tuesday, Feb. 17. (New York Stock Exchange)
Once the market opens, investors are looking out for new analyst notes dissecting Maplebear’s first-quarter targets—questions swirling about whether those numbers are in reach, and if Friday’s rally will actually stick after the earnings noise fades.
