Instacart is publicly owned through shares in Maplebear Inc., the company behind the grocery-delivery app. That means public shareholders own part of the business, including both large investment firms and individual investors. For people ordering groceries, the name on the app may matter most. For owners, the shares and corporate name tell the fuller story.
Maplebear Inc. trades on the Nasdaq under the ticker CART. Its stock gives investors a direct stake in the company that runs grocery delivery across the United States and Canada. The details can be useful when weighing the company’s growth, its business risks, or a proposed change in ownership.
The key distinction is that the Instacart name is the brand, while Maplebear Inc. is the legal corporation.
Key Takeaways
- Maplebear Inc. is the legal company behind the Instacart brand.
- Its shares trade on the Nasdaq as CART.
- Public shareholders include investment firms and individual investors.
- No single shareholder controls the company.
- DoorDash has proposed buying the company, but the deal still needs approval.
Who Owns Instacart?
No single shareholder controls Instacart, and each share of its common stock carries one vote. The company belongs to its public shareholders, whose holdings include both people and investment firms. Reported holdings show who owns large stakes, but they do not give any one holder control.
Ravi Gupta, Daniel S. Sundheim, and co-founder Apoorva Mehta held the largest reported stakes in October 2026. The figures below describe reported holdings at that time, not the stakes founders held when the company first started. An investor’s share count and percentage can shift as people trade shares or the company issues new ones.
| Holder | Shares | Stake | Reporting date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ravi Gupta | 28,620,411 | 12.36% | October 2026 |
| Daniel S. Sundheim | 26,711,408 | 11.54% | October 2026 |
| Apoorva Mehta | 17,418,033 | 7.52% | October 2026 |
The largest reported holders
These three holdings add up to less than one-third of the company’s shares. Other shareholders include funds, institutions, and individual investors. For example, BlackRock reported 15,918,876 shares, or 6.6%, as of March 31, 2026, in its SEC Schedule 13G filing.
That filing shows one institutional snapshot, not a permanent ownership record. A public company’s reported stakes can change as investors buy or sell shares, and reporting dates matter when comparing holders.
Voting rights and leadership
Each common share has one vote, and the company has no controlling shareholder. A larger share count brings more votes, but no single holder has enough shares to control the company. Shareholders vote on matters that require their approval, while company leaders run daily operations.
Ownership percentages are dated snapshots, not fixed shares of control.
Chris Rogers became CEO in August 2025. His role is to lead the business, while shareholders hold ownership through their shares. That separates day-to-day leadership from legal ownership.
Treat ownership percentages as dated snapshots, since public-company holdings can change.
How Did Instacart’s Founders and Early Investors Shape the Company?
Instacart began in San Francisco in 2012 with co-founders Apoorva Mehta, Max Mullen, and Brandon Leonardo. They built a startup around ordering groceries online and having shoppers pick and deliver the items. Early funding helped the company expand before public investors could buy shares.
Mehta helped lead the company through its early years and held roughly 10% at the September 2023 IPO. He left the board in connection with the offering, so his role as a founder did not make him a current controller. The company raised more than $2.8 billion privately across roughly a decade.
The three co-founders and the early startup
The founders turned a local grocery service into a national marketplace with retail partners. Sequoia Capital led the company’s 2013 Series A, bringing early outside funding and a major investor into the business. That early stake later became part of a much wider public market.
At the IPO, the company’s share price valued it well below its early 2021 private valuation. The offering also let early investors sell some shares and gave new public investors a way to own part of the business.
Private funding, IPO, and early stakes
| Investor | Approximate ownership at the 2023 IPO | Connection to Instacart |
|---|---|---|
| Sequoia Capital | Roughly 14% | Lead investor in the approximately $8.5 million Series A |
| D1 Capital Partners | Roughly 13% | Private investor |
| Apoorva Mehta | Roughly 10% | Co-founder |
PepsiCo also bought $175 million of convertible preferred stock at the IPO. Convertible preferred stock can later turn into common shares under set terms. The IPO raised $660 million, while its $30 share price valued the company at about $9.9 billion, down from $39 billion in early 2021.
- 2012: Y Combinator funding of $2.3 million.
- 2013: Series A of approximately $8.5 million, led by Sequoia Capital.
- September 2023: IPO at $30 per share, raising $660 million.
The Instacart IPO opened trading to public investors after years of private funding. The IPO broadened ownership beyond the founders and early private investors by putting shares on the public market.
How Much Is Instacart Worth, and Is It Profitable?
Instacart reported $147 million in GAAP net income in the third quarter of 2026, so it was profitable on that measure for the quarter. Positive net income is the direct answer: the company earned more than it spent under GAAP accounting that quarter. Its revenue and order totals also grew year over year.
Market capitalization is the share price multiplied by the number of shares outstanding. The company’s market capitalization was about $9.4 billion, with shares near $40, in May 2026. That is a dated value, not a permanent price tag for the business.
Gross transaction value (GTV) is the total dollar value of orders processed through the marketplace. In the third quarter of 2026, GTV reached $10.528 billion, while customers placed 91.4 million orders. Both figures rose from the same quarter a year earlier.
| Measure | Third-quarter 2026 result | Year-over-year change |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $1,095 million | 17% |
| GAAP net income | $147 million | 2% |
| GTV | $10,528 million | 15% |
| Orders | 91.4 million | 10% |
| Advertising and other revenue | $331 million | 23% |
Revenue, orders, and income
Instacart revenue reached $3.74 billion in 2025. Revenue was $2.55 billion in 2022, when net income was $428 million. The company recorded a $74 million net loss in 2021.
Advertising and other revenue grew faster than total revenue in the third quarter. That part of the business reached $331 million, up 23% year over year. The figures show that grocery delivery is not the company’s only source of sales.
Cash and share repurchases
The company repurchased $230 million in shares during the quarter and ended it with $1 billion in cash and similar assets. A repurchase uses company cash to buy its own shares, which reduces the number of shares held by investors outside the company.
Market value and quarterly income answer different questions. Share price can change each trading day, while reported income covers a set period. Keep valuation dates attached to the figures, since the May share-price snapshot and third-quarter results describe different points in 2026.
What Would DoorDash’s Proposed Acquisition Mean for Instacart?
DoorDash and Instacart have agreed to a proposed cash-and-stock acquisition valued at approximately $17 billion, pending approvals. The companies announced the agreement on October 29, 2026. The deal is still proposed, so ownership has not changed.
Shareholders and regulators must approve the transaction. If they do, the companies expect it to close by the end of 2027 or in early 2028. DoorDash’s market value was $73 billion in October 2026.
Deal terms and approval timeline
The proposed terms describe how the companies would work together after a close. The deal also resembles other proposed corporate combinations in one practical way: shareholder votes can shape whether ownership changes. A separate shareholder approval timeline offers context on that step, not on this deal’s terms.
- DoorDash would pay with a mix of cash and stock.
- The Instacart name and app would continue.
- Its current shoppers would keep fulfilling orders as before.
- Members could pay one fee instead of separate $9.99 monthly DashPass and Instacart+ fees, with access to 50,000 more stores.
How the combination could change delivery access
DoorDash is Instacart’s largest delivery-platform competitor in the October 2026 comparison. DoorDash had 59% of U.S. delivery-platform spending, Instacart had 18%, and Uber Eats remained just under 20%.
Those figures measure spending on delivery platforms, not grocery spending overall. Walmart had 21% of U.S. grocery spending in October 2026, while Costco and Amazon each had 8%. The two sets of shares describe different markets.
DoorDash completed more than 3 billion orders in 2025 using 9 million independent delivery workers. Instacart fulfilled 338 million orders that year. The proposed combination could give Instacart customers more store access, while keeping its shoppers and app in place.
Until shareholders and government regulators approve the transaction and it closes, Instacart has not transferred to DoorDash.
What Business and Legal Risks Shape Instacart?
Instacart connects customers using its app with retail partners, and its headquarters are in San Francisco. Shoppers pick, pack, and deliver grocery orders placed through the app. The marketplace model lets customers order from many stores without each retailer running its own delivery service.
In October 2026, the company partnered with more than 2,200 retail banners, representing nearly 100,000 stores. Customers can also turn meal ideas into local grocery carts through an Instacart grocery connection in ChatGPT. A separate grocery-ordering app comparison explains how these tools can connect a list to nearby retailers.
How the marketplace and retail partnerships work
The app acts as a bridge between shoppers and retail partners. Store selection can vary by location, and the shopper handles the in-store work after an order comes in. That setup gives customers access to many stores through one service.
Instacart stopped its AI item-price tests on December 22, 2025. Retailers may still test promotions and discounts, which are separate from those discontinued tests.
Consumer protections and pricing tests
A federal court entered a $60 million judgment against the company on January 13, 2026, in an FTC case involving allegations about delivery-fee advertising, refund guarantees, and subscription enrollment. The case concerned people charged for Instacart+ without express informed consent, often after a 14-day free trial rolled into an annual plan typically priced at $99.
The FTC order sets rules for how subscriptions and related claims must be handled:
- Get express informed consent before charging for a subscription.
- Do not misrepresent delivery costs.
- Do not misrepresent refund guarantees.
The $60 million judgment does not mean every customer will receive a refund.
The judgment addressed the FTC case and its allegations; it does not promise an individual payment to every customer. The order focuses on clear consent and honest claims, especially when a free trial turns into a paid plan.
Separate retailer promotions from Instacart’s discontinued AI item-price tests when describing how grocery prices may be tested.
Conclusion
Instacart’s ownership is public today, while any change to that structure depends on the proposed acquisition closing. Public investors own shares in Maplebear Inc., and the familiar Instacart name belongs to its consumer-facing brand.
The DoorDash agreement could change who owns the company, but it remains conditional on shareholder and regulatory approval. Readers tracking the company’s future can focus on those decisions rather than treating the announced deal as complete.
Check the company’s next shareholder and regulatory updates before treating the deal as final.
FAQ
What are the funding rounds that Instacart has participated in?
Instacart raised $2.3 million through Y Combinator in 2012, then about $8.5 million in a 2013 Series A led by Sequoia Capital. The company raised more than $2.8 billion privately across roughly a decade. Its September 2023 IPO raised $660 million and opened its shares to public investors.
Who does Instacart belong to?
Instacart belongs to shareholders of Maplebear Inc., which trades publicly as CART. Its owners include investment firms and individual investors. No single shareholder controls the company, and each common share carries one vote. That means ownership is spread among shareholders rather than held by one founder or parent company.
Why is Instacart being investigated?
The FTC case concerned delivery-fee advertising, refund guarantees, and subscription enrollment. A federal court entered a $60 million judgment against Instacart on January 13, 2026. The order requires express informed consent before subscription charges and bars misrepresentations about delivery costs and refund guarantees.
Who is Instacart’s biggest competitor?
DoorDash was Instacart’s biggest delivery-platform competitor in the October 2026 comparison. DoorDash had 59% of U.S. delivery-platform spending, while Instacart had 18%. Uber Eats remained just under 20%. These figures compare delivery-platform spending, not each company’s share of all grocery sales.
What is the downside of Instacart?
Consumer trust and the cost of delivery are key concerns. Delivery-cost claims, refund guarantees, and subscription enrollment drew FTC scrutiny. A federal court’s order requires express informed consent before subscription charges. Customers may also face a paid annual plan after a free trial if they enroll and do not cancel.
Is Instacart being sued right now?
A federal court entered a $60 million judgment in the FTC case on January 13, 2026. That dated judgment does not, by itself, show that the case remains active today. The case involved delivery-fee advertising, refund guarantees, and subscription enrollment, and its order set rules for future subscription charges and claims.
