Covering IPOs, Healthcare and Technology Stocks

Andrei Zakharov

Equity Capital Markets

<ul>
<li>Klarna, a leading BNPL player in Europe, will try to push ahead with IPO in the second half of the year. The fintech unicorn plans to raise up to ~$1B.</li>
<li>Klarna picked a not great time to take the company public, keeping in mind negative impact of Trump’s tariffs on BNPL players in the U.S. and European Union.</li>
<li>I believe the company may price its IPO above last round valuation of ~$6.7B led by Sequoia Capital, Silver Lake, CPPIB, and Mubadala Investment Company, among others.</li>
</ul>


Klarna, a leading BNPL player in Europe, will try to push ahead with IPO in the second half of the year. The fintech unicorn plans to raise up to ~$1B.
Klarna picked a not great time to take the company public, keeping in mind negative impact of Trump’s tariffs on BNPL players in the U.S. and European Union.
I believe the company may price its IPO above last round valuation of ~$6.7B led by Sequoia Capital, Silver Lake, CPPIB, and Mubadala Investment Company, among others.


Klarna IPO Valuation Analysis: Don’t Expect a Premium Multiple Relative to Affirm Holdings

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Garvit Bhandari

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Leading Provider of Equity and Investment Research

GSBR Research

We are an independent equity research provider focused on covering global markets. The aim of the research is to provide an unbiased view of the fundamentals of the company.

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>AFRM posted solid Q3 2025 results with revenue growing of 35.9% YOY and in line with its stated guidance range. The adjusted operating income margin expanded by ~850 bps YOY.</li>
<li>Q425 guidance was muted with implied revenue growth of 26% at the mid-point. This is much lower compared to 40.7%, 46.6% and 35.9% growth during Q1, Q2 and Q3 2025.</li>
<li>AFRM’s valuation remains rich at 5.1x 2025E P/B and 25.2x 2025E P/E multiple, at a premium to the peer group average. This caps any meaningful upside from the current levels.</li>
</ul>


AFRM posted solid Q3 2025 results with revenue growing of 35.9% YOY and in line with its stated guidance range. The adjusted operating income margin expanded by ~850 bps YOY.
Q425 guidance was muted with implied revenue growth of 26% at the mid-point. This is much lower compared to 40.7%, 46.6% and 35.9% growth during Q1, Q2 and Q3 2025.
AFRM’s valuation remains rich at 5.1x 2025E P/B and 25.2x 2025E P/E multiple, at a premium to the peer group average. This caps any meaningful upside from the current levels.


Affirm Holdings Inc. (AFRM) Financial Factsheet - Growth, Valuation & Peers

<ul>
<li>Klarna Group, a Swedish fintech company and BNPL provider, filed for an IPO and submitted a registration statement F-1 form with the SEC.</li>
<li>The company believes that AI and product diversification will boost profitability in the coming years coupled with aggressive cost-cutting and better underwriting process.</li>
<li>However, Klarna delayed its planned IPO due to extreme volatility and Trump’s tariffs, which are a headwind for BNPL players, including Affirm and Klarna.</li>
</ul>


Klarna Group, a Swedish fintech company and BNPL provider, filed for an IPO and submitted a registration statement F-1 form with the SEC.
The company believes that AI and product diversification will boost profitability in the coming years coupled with aggressive cost-cutting and better underwriting process.
However, Klarna delayed its planned IPO due to extreme volatility and Trump’s tariffs, which are a headwind for BNPL players, including Affirm and Klarna.


Klarna IPO Preview: The Dominant BNPL Player in Europe, Trump’s Tariffs Are a Headwind

Independent research on the U.S. markets, Baptista Research

Baptista Research

Independent research on the U.S. markets

Baptista Research is an independent financial research house focused on the U.S. markets. We provide equity research as well as credit research reports on the top-listed U.S. companies with most of our focus on technology, consumer goods and services, automobiles, industrials, oil and gas, pharma, and healthcare. Our research has served more than 3000 institutional investors including mutual funds, hedge funds, banks, family offices, and various buy-side firms. We operate a research subscription service where institutions, as well as retail investors, can have priority access to all our research. We also have a wide distribution of our research reports across some of the top global financial platforms. Apart from equity research and credit research, we also provide advisory services with respect to mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity/ venture capital fundraising, valuation reports, and investment management services for corporates.
Baptista Research is owned and managed by Ishan Majumdar, an ex-Venture Capitalist/ Investment Banker, a Chartered Accountant, and a Masters’ degree holder in Management from HEC Paris. Ishan has nearly a decade of experience in Mergers and Acquisitions, Leveraged Buyouts (LBOs), Venture Capital Investing, Corporate Strategy, and Valuation in front-office roles at the likes of BNP Paribas CIB, Credit Agricole CIB, Groupe Danone, and TIW Private Equity. He has worked on and closed multiple acquisition deals, leveraged buyouts, and start-up investment transactions.

<ul><li>Affirm Holdings, Inc. recently provided an update on its fiscal first-quarter performance for 2025, sharing various insights regarding its current operations and strategic direction.</li><li>Throughout the session led by Founder and CEO Max Levchin, as well as other key executives, the company highlighted strong financial metrics, ongoing initiatives, and future considerations, all of which culminated in both opportunities and challenges for investors assessing its market potentials and risks.</li><li>Baptista Research looks to evaluate the different factors that could influence the company's price in the near future and attempts to carry out an independent valuation of the company using a Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) methodology.</li></ul>

Affirm Holdings, Inc. recently provided an update on its fiscal first-quarter performance for 2025, sharing various insights regarding its current operations and strategic direction.Throughout the session led by Founder and CEO Max Levchin, as well as other key executives, the company highlighted strong financial metrics, ongoing initiatives, and future considerations, all of which culminated in both opportunities and challenges for investors assessing its market potentials and risks.Baptista Research looks to evaluate the different factors that could influence the company's price in the near future and attempts to carry out an independent valuation of the company using a Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) methodology.

Affirm Holdings Inc.: Dealing With Funding Strategy Vulnerabilities & 4 Other Challenges! - Major Drivers

<ul><li>Affirm Holdings recently reported its Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2024 Earnings and the management emphasized the company's robust performance both in terms of growth and profitability for the fiscal year.</li><li>The discussion underlined Affirm's management's ability to leverage technological advancements, particularly in artificial intelligence and machine learning, to maintain control over credit outcomes, which they describe as an intentional result of their strategies.</li><li>Baptista Research looks to evaluate the different factors that could influence the company's price in the near future and attempts to carry out an independent valuation of the company using a Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) methodology.</li></ul>

Affirm Holdings recently reported its Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2024 Earnings and the management emphasized the company's robust performance both in terms of growth and profitability for the fiscal year.The discussion underlined Affirm's management's ability to leverage technological advancements, particularly in artificial intelligence and machine learning, to maintain control over credit outcomes, which they describe as an intentional result of their strategies.Baptista Research looks to evaluate the different factors that could influence the company's price in the near future and attempts to carry out an independent valuation of the company using a Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) methodology.

Affirm Holdings: Expanded Adoption of Wallet Partnerships & Other Major Drivers

United States

Affirm Holdings, Inc. is a financial technology company. The Company builds platform for digital and mobile-first commerce. Affirm Holdings offers financial services tool that allows consumers to purchase goods and services. Affirm Holdings serves customers worldwide.

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Affirm Holdings (AFRM US)

Klarna IPO Valuation Analysis: Don’t Expect a Premium Multiple Relative to Affirm Holdings

Klarna plans to move forward with IPO despite potential challenges from Trump's tariffs, aiming to raise up to ~$1B and possibly price the...

Andrei Zakharov

Affirm Holdings Inc. (AFRM) Financial Factsheet - Growth, Valuation & Peers

AFRM's Q3 2025 results show strong revenue growth and expanded operating income margin, but Q4 guidance is lower and valuation remains high,...

GSBR Research

Klarna IPO Preview: The Dominant BNPL Player in Europe, Trump’s Tariffs Are a Headwind

Klarna, a Swedish fintech player and the dominant BNPL player in Europe, plans to raise up to $1B in US IPO. I’m cautious about buying into...

Andrei Zakharov

Affirm Holdings Inc.: Dealing With Funding Strategy Vulnerabilities & 4 Other Challenges! - Major Drivers

Affirm Holdings, Inc. recently provided an update on its fiscal first-quarter performance for 2025, sharing various insights regarding its current...

Baptista Research

Affirm Holdings: Expanded Adoption of Wallet Partnerships & Other Major Drivers

Affirm Holdings recently reported its Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2024 Earnings and the management emphasized the company's robust performance both in...

Baptista Research

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Klarna IPO Valuation Analysis: Don’t Expect a Premium Multiple Relative to Affirm Holdings

​Klarna plans to move forward with IPO despite potential challenges from Trump's tariffs, aiming to raise up to ~$1B and possibly price the...

Andrei Zakharov

Affirm Holdings Inc. (AFRM) Financial Factsheet - Growth, Valuation & Peers

​AFRM's Q3 2025 results show strong revenue growth and expanded operating income margin, but Q4 guidance is lower and valuation remains high,...

GSBR Research

Klarna IPO Preview: The Dominant BNPL Player in Europe, Trump’s Tariffs Are a Headwind

Klarna, a Swedish fintech player and the dominant BNPL player in Europe, plans to raise up to $1B in US IPO. I’m cautious about buying into...

Andrei Zakharov

Affirm Holdings Inc.: Dealing With Funding Strategy Vulnerabilities & 4 Other Challenges! - Major Drivers

Affirm Holdings, Inc. recently provided an update on its fiscal first-quarter performance for 2025, sharing various insights regarding its current...

Baptista Research

Affirm Holdings: Expanded Adoption of Wallet Partnerships & Other Major Drivers

Affirm Holdings recently reported its Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2024 Earnings and the management emphasized the company's robust performance both in...

Baptista Research

Klarna plans to move forward with IPO despite potential challenges from Trump's tariffs, aiming to raise up to ~$1B and possibly price the...

AFRM's Q3 2025 results show strong revenue growth and expanded operating income margin, but Q4 guidance is lower and valuation remains high,...