Financials & FinTech research, Galliano’s Financials Research

Victor Galliano

Financials & FinTech research

Financials & FinTech, EM & Developed Markets

Galliano’s Financials Research

Galliano's Financials Research provides fundamental research in Emerging Markets financials, including FinTech, as well as financials in select Developed Markets.

The investment style applied is generally value oriented, although Growth At Reasonable Price (GARP) strategies can also be used where appropriate. 

Our investment research approach aim is often contrarian, looking to capitalise on overly sceptical or optimistic consensus views. In terms of valuation techniques, the focus is on PBV ratio to ROE, PE multiples and dividend yield, as well as the application of PEG ratios and, where appropriate, Sum of the Parts (SOTP) valuations.

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>Lula increased his verbal offensive against the Central Bank’s independence and its monetary policy; is this a storm in a teacup or a threat to the Central Bank’s status quo?</li>
<li>With the appointment of Fernando Haddad as left-leaning finance minister, there is genuine concern regarding the scope for potential interference by the Lula administration in forthcoming monetary policy</li>
<li>Government interference could lead to public sector banks offering more subsidized credit to lower income groups; although this is Caixa Economica Federal’s domain, this could increasingly include Banco do Brasil</li>
</ul>


Lula increased his verbal offensive against the Central Bank’s independence and its monetary policy; is this a storm in a teacup or a threat to the Central Bank’s status quo?
With the appointment of Fernando Haddad as left-leaning finance minister, there is genuine concern regarding the scope for potential interference by the Lula administration in forthcoming monetary policy
Government interference could lead to public sector banks offering more subsidized credit to lower income groups; although this is Caixa Economica Federal’s domain, this could increasingly include Banco do Brasil


Lula Hits Out at Central Bank Independence; Time to Take Profits on Banco Do Brasil

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>Itausa has acquired a 10.3% stake in toll road company CCR, in a diversification move away from its core financials holdings; yet financials still account for 90%+ of holdings value</li>
<li>Itausa’s stated NAV discount is over 26%, and we believe this discount is slightly under-estimated; Itausa’s indirect XP stake adds to the NAV, implying a discount of close to 28%</li>
<li>Reinvesting the proceeds of XP disposals in CCR makes good diversification sense; aside from the historically high NAV discount, Itausa has an attractive LTM dividend yield of over 5%</li>
</ul>


Itausa has acquired a 10.3% stake in toll road company CCR, in a diversification move away from its core financials holdings; yet financials still account for 90%+ of holdings value
Itausa’s stated NAV discount is over 26%, and we believe this discount is slightly under-estimated; Itausa’s indirect XP stake adds to the NAV, implying a discount of close to 28%
Reinvesting the proceeds of XP disposals in CCR makes good diversification sense; aside from the historically high NAV discount, Itausa has an attractive LTM dividend yield of over 5%


Itausa (ITSA4 BZ); Attractive NAV Discount, Dividend Yield & Portfolio Diversification Are Positives

<ul>
<li>Itausa is trading at a HoldCo NAV discount in excess of 25%, which is historically rare; we reiterate our positive view on Itausa</li>
<li>We believe that the NAV is under-estimated; separate from Itausa’s stake in XP, Itaú Unibanco, which is Itausa’s core holding with a 37.2% stake, has a direct 9.96% XP stake</li>
<li>Adding its indirect XP stake share to Itausa’s NAV implies a discount of 27%; since December 2008, only on 11% of the month end datapoints has Itausa’s discount exceeded 25%</li>
</ul>


Itausa is trading at a HoldCo NAV discount in excess of 25%, which is historically rare; we reiterate our positive view on Itausa
We believe that the NAV is under-estimated; separate from Itausa’s stake in XP, Itaú Unibanco, which is Itausa’s core holding with a 37.2% stake, has a direct 9.96% XP stake
Adding its indirect XP stake share to Itausa’s NAV implies a discount of 27%; since December 2008, only on 11% of the month end datapoints has Itausa’s discount exceeded 25%


Itausa (ITSA4 BZ) – Historically Big NAV Discount Buying Opportunity

<ul>
<li>Banco Central do Brasil has been raising benchmark interest rates aggressively since 1H2021 and we believe it is approaching the peak of its tightening cycle; this feeds into loan spreads</li>
<li>1Q22 Brazil bank results showed limited evidence of widening spreads, due to a time lag, but loan quality is worsening due to the hiking interest rates amid the soft economy</li>
<li>Disciplined loan origination should support bank returns, especially in the consumer and SME segments, containing credit cost charges growth as spreads expand; deep-value Banco do Brasil remains our top pick</li>
</ul>


Banco Central do Brasil has been raising benchmark interest rates aggressively since 1H2021 and we believe it is approaching the peak of its tightening cycle; this feeds into loan spreads
1Q22 Brazil bank results showed limited evidence of widening spreads, due to a time lag, but loan quality is worsening due to the hiking interest rates amid the soft economy
Disciplined loan origination should support bank returns, especially in the consumer and SME segments, containing credit cost charges growth as spreads expand; deep-value Banco do Brasil remains our top pick


Brazil Banks – Returns Tug of War Between Spreads and Credit Costs, Stick with Banco Do Brasil

<ul>
<li>Despite the compression in the Brazil digital banks’ multiples from the FinTech de-rating, big fundamental hurdles remain, especially for Nubank</li>
<li>Nubank is delivering on increased loan penetration and this should drive revenue growth; still, this also drives higher and front loaded provisioning charges along with capital absorption</li>
<li>Banco Inter is less challenged than Nubank on most metrics, and it is modestly profitable, but we believe it is too early to turn positive; we like Banco do Brasil</li>
</ul>


Despite the compression in the Brazil digital banks’ multiples from the FinTech de-rating, big fundamental hurdles remain, especially for Nubank
Nubank is delivering on increased loan penetration and this should drive revenue growth; still, this also drives higher and front loaded provisioning charges along with capital absorption
Banco Inter is less challenged than Nubank on most metrics, and it is modestly profitable, but we believe it is too early to turn positive; we like Banco do Brasil


Brazil Digital Banks – Nubank and Banco Inter Shares Have De-Rated, but Still Face Challenges

Brazil

Itaú Unibanco Holding S.A. is a Brazilian multinational financial conglomerate and the largest bank in Latin America by market value. It offers a comprehensive suite of financial products and services, including retail and wholesale banking, investment banking, asset management, and insurance to individual and corporate clients. The company is headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil, and traces its origins to 1924, with the merger of Banco Itaú and Unibanco forming the current entity in 2008.

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Itau Unibanco (ITUB4 BR)

Lula Hits Out at Central Bank Independence; Time to Take Profits on Banco Do Brasil

Lula hitting out at the Central Bank means growing political risk for Banco do Brasil; we downgrade it to neutral on spread erosion risk from...

Victor Galliano

Itausa (ITSA4 BZ); Attractive NAV Discount, Dividend Yield & Portfolio Diversification Are Positives

Itausa's wide NAV discount, dividend yield of 5%+ and its portfolio diversification into infrastructure are all positives which we expect to lead...

Victor Galliano

Itausa (ITSA4 BZ) – Historically Big NAV Discount Buying Opportunity

Itausa is trading at a HoldCo NAV discount of 25%+, which is rare; in addition, we estimate that Itausa's enhanced NAV discount is a historically...

Victor Galliano

Brazil Banks – Returns Tug of War Between Spreads and Credit Costs, Stick with Banco Do Brasil

Higher benchmark interest rates feed into wider spreads for Brazil banks, and in the returns tug of war between higher spreads and bigger credit...

Victor Galliano

Brazil Digital Banks – Nubank and Banco Inter Shares Have De-Rated, but Still Face Challenges

The Brazil digital banks' high loan penetration should drive revenue growth, but this also accelerates NPL formation, provisioning charges and...

Victor Galliano

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