Shares rise 15% on debut and Nubank becomes 3rd most valuable company in the country

In its debut on the New York Stock Exchange (Nyse), in the United States, the shares of Nubank were not affected by the feeling of greater risk aversion that dominated global markets on Thursday (9). The shares ended with a strong appreciation of 14.78%, quoted at US$ 10.33 (R$ 57.39).

The movement went against the trend observed among the main stock indices of the American stock exchanges — the S&P 500 ended with a drop of 0.72%, while the Nasdaq retreated 1.71%. The Dow Jones was close to stability.

At the opening of the business, the rise in fintech shares reached more than 30%, which made the market value jump to around US$ 50 billion (R$ 277.8 billion). At the end of the trading session, the company closed with a market cap of US$47.6 billion (R$264.45 billion).

The day before, the company was valued by investors at around US$ 41.5 billion (R$ 230.56 billion), when the value per share was set at US$ 9 (R$ 50).

At B3, in which certificates corresponding to shares traded on the NYSE were simultaneously listed, Nubank’s BDRs rose 20.1% this Thursday, to R$ 10.04. Each BDR represents a fraction of 1/6 of a share originally traded on the US stock exchange.

As a result, the digital bank is positioned as the third largest Brazilian company with shares listed on the Stock Exchange in terms of market value.

Nubank is second only to Petrobras (US$ 70.7 billion, R$ 392.7 billion) and Vale (US$ 69.3 billion, R$ 385 billion).

By the market value criterion, fintech is already ahead of names like Ambev (US$ 43.7 billion, R$ 242.8 billion) and Itaú Unibanco (US$ 36.5 billion, R$ 202.7 billion) , being the most valuable financial institution in Latin America, according to investor calculations.

“The most important reflection of this IPO is how the view of foreign investors on technology is very different from the view of national investors”, says Thiago Lobão, founder and executive president of Catarina Capital, investment manager focused on the technology sector and which contributed resources in the offer of the digital bank.

According to him, while in the local market some analysts saw the arrival of fintech on the Stock Exchange with some skepticism, already on a more global scale, it was possible to verify, due to the strong rise in shares, that the view is much more favorable in relation to the evolution to the business.

“With the IPO, Nubank’s mission now is to start moving towards a path of generating profitability and being a cash generator with greater intensity, but foreign investors look at this with much more patience and with much more sustainable parallels from others technology companies than the Brazilian investor,” stated Lobão.

One of the questions on the part of the market concerns the bank’s lack of profitability — from January to September, the group had a loss of US$ 99.1 million (R$ 550.6 billion).

He adds that the difference in the perception of Brazilian and international investors about the digital business helps to explain the significantly higher demand coming from outside pockets, compared to local ones.

The less benign environment than was predicted until recently for technology companies, recognizes Lobão, could bring volatility to the performance of shares over the next few sessions.

But over a medium and long-term horizon, he adds, the prospects are very positive for business growth.

Late last month, Nubank said that affiliates of Sequoia Capital, Tiger Global Management, SoftBank Latin America Funds and others would anchor the IPO and buy shares worth at least $1.3 billion. billion).

Danielle Lopes, an analyst at the analysis house Nord Research who recommended investors not to enter the offer, points out that, from now on, all attention will be focused on when the bank will finally be able to make a profit for its shareholders.

“The company has the promise of monetizing the customer base, but it may not be as fast as expected,” says the expert. “If the market expects a profit and the company doesn’t deliver, we know that the shares could suffer.”

(With Reuters)