APAC IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Akshat Shah

APAC IPOs & Placements

IPOs and Placements coverage across Asia Pacific

Aequitas Research

We cover all listing across the Asia Pacific along with follow-up placements. As of Dec 2020, our team had covered 539 IPOs with a hit rate of 73.5% and 685 placements with a hit rate of 66.8%.

We combine fundamental bottom-up views with our proprietary quantitative framework to provide a holistic coverage across new listings and placements. Our coverage includes pre-IPO notes before the deal is launched, follow-up analysis once the deal is live and post-listing trading analysis as well.

Equity Capital Markets

Nippon Steel Corporation / Equity Capital Markets

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/posco-holdings-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:208:1" rel="noopener">POSCO Holdings (005490 KS)</a> is looking to sell its remaining stake in <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nippon-steel-corporation" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:961:1" rel="noopener">Nippon Steel Corporation (5401 JP)</a> to raise up to US$154m via a cleanup block trade.</li>
<li>This deal represents 1.6 days of ADV and is around 1% of shares outstanding.</li>
<li>In this note, we will talk about the placement and run the deal through our ECM framework.</li>
</ul>



POSCO Holdings (005490 KS) is looking to sell its remaining stake in Nippon Steel Corporation (5401 JP) to raise up to US$154m via a cleanup block trade.
This deal represents 1.6 days of ADV and is around 1% of shares outstanding.
In this note, we will talk about the placement and run the deal through our ECM framework.


Nippon Steel Placement - Cleanup by Posco Right After Expiry of Previous Deal

Global Materials | Industrials | Commodities

Rahul Jain

Equity Bottom-Up

Nippon Steel Corporation / Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>Guidance cut (Business Profit ¥500 bn → ¥450 bn) as U.S. Steel delivers no profit contribution, overseas spreads weaken, and one-off losses weigh on earnings; domestic operations remain resilient.</li>
<li>Integration drag : $11 bn U.S. Steel modernization plan and rigid U.S. labor terms keep margins diluted and free cash flow negative; deleveraging and ROCE recovery deferred to FY27+.</li>
<li>Valuation rich, patience warranted: Trading at ~19× EV/EBITDA (vs peer median ~10×) with ROCE &lt; 8%; maintain Hold / Underweight until synergy visibility and free-cash-flow inflection emerge post-FY26.</li>
</ul>


Guidance cut (Business Profit ¥500 bn → ¥450 bn) as U.S. Steel delivers no profit contribution, overseas spreads weaken, and one-off losses weigh on earnings; domestic operations remain resilient.
Integration drag : $11 bn U.S. Steel modernization plan and rigid U.S. labor terms keep margins diluted and free cash flow negative; deleveraging and ROCE recovery deferred to FY27+.
Valuation rich, patience warranted: Trading at ~19× EV/EBITDA (vs peer median ~10×) with ROCE &lt; 8%; maintain Hold / Underweight until synergy visibility and free-cash-flow inflection emerge post-FY26.


Nippon Steel: Integration First, Payoff Later — FY2025 Reset Delays the Synergy Story

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/posco-holdings-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:208:1" rel="noopener">POSCO Holdings (005490 KS)</a> is looking to raise up to US$169m via selling some of its stake in <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nippon-steel-corporation" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:961:1" rel="noopener">Nippon Steel Corporation (5401 JP)</a>.</li>
<li>This deal represents 1.5 days of ADV representing around 0.7% of shares outstanding.</li>
<li>In this note, we will talk about the placement and run the deal through our ECM framework.</li>
</ul>



POSCO Holdings (005490 KS) is looking to raise up to US$169m via selling some of its stake in Nippon Steel Corporation (5401 JP).
This deal represents 1.5 days of ADV representing around 0.7% of shares outstanding.
In this note, we will talk about the placement and run the deal through our ECM framework.


Nippon Steel Placement - Relatively Small Deal with Recent Pick-Up in Momentum

<ul>
<li>Nippon Steel’s $14.9 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel, finalized in July 2025, significantly expands its North American presence but introduces margin and cost challenges.</li>
<li>Announced Plans: A $11 billion capex plan through 2028 targets a new EAF mill, Gary Works upgrades, and efficiency enhancements to drive synergies.</li>
<li>What to Watch: Monitor synergy execution, steel price trends, and U.S. Steel’s FCF generation to assess whether Nippon can offset margin dilution and balance sheet strain.</li>
</ul>


Nippon Steel’s $14.9 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel, finalized in July 2025, significantly expands its North American presence but introduces margin and cost challenges.
Announced Plans: A $11 billion capex plan through 2028 targets a new EAF mill, Gary Works upgrades, and efficiency enhancements to drive synergies.
What to Watch: Monitor synergy execution, steel price trends, and U.S. Steel’s FCF generation to assess whether Nippon can offset margin dilution and balance sheet strain.


Nippon Steel (5401.T) – Financial and Strategic Analysis Post-U.S. Steel Acquisition

<ul>
<li>Nippon Steel has acquired U.S. Steel for $14.2 billion in cash, adding 23 Mt of crude steel capacity and a full U.S. and EU footprint.</li>
<li>The acquisition marks a bold step toward NS’s “100 MT Vision,” diversifying earnings beyond Japan and strengthening presence in a geopolitically stable market.</li>
<li>U.S. Steel remains heavily BF–based and tied to a structurally flat demand market; long-term steel consumption in the U.S. has declined, making returns dependent on aggressive modernization &amp; macro tailwinds.</li>
</ul>


Nippon Steel has acquired U.S. Steel for $14.2 billion in cash, adding 23 Mt of crude steel capacity and a full U.S. and EU footprint.
The acquisition marks a bold step toward NS’s “100 MT Vision,” diversifying earnings beyond Japan and strengthening presence in a geopolitically stable market.
U.S. Steel remains heavily BF–based and tied to a structurally flat demand market; long-term steel consumption in the U.S. has declined, making returns dependent on aggressive modernization &amp; macro tailwinds.


Nippon Steel (5401) – $14.2B U.S. Steel Bet Targets Growth, Faces U.S. Market Maturity Risks

Japan

Nippon Steel Corp is an integrated steel maker. The Company produces various types of steel products used for industrial machinery & equipment and exports them worldwide.  Nippon Steel provides plant construction and urban development and also develops new businesses such as chemicals, ceramics, electronic equipment and information & communication systems.

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Nippon Steel Corporation (5401 JP)

Nippon Steel Placement - Cleanup by Posco Right After Expiry of Previous Deal

Posco Holdings is looking to sell its remaining stake in Nippon Steel (5401 JP) to raise up to US$154m via a cleanup block trade.

Akshat Shah

Nippon Steel: Integration First, Payoff Later — FY2025 Reset Delays the Synergy Story

Business profit guidance cut due to lack of profit contribution from U.S. Steel, weakening overseas spreads, and one-off losses; integration drag...

Rahul Jain

Nippon Steel Placement - Relatively Small Deal with Recent Pick-Up in Momentum

Posco Holdings is looking to raise up to US$169m via selling some of its stake in Nippon Steel (5401 JP). In this note, we will talk about the...

Akshat Shah

Nippon Steel (5401.T) – Financial and Strategic Analysis Post-U.S. Steel Acquisition

Nippon Steel's acquisition of U.S. Steel boosts North American presence but faces challenges in margins and costs. Watch synergy execution and...

Rahul Jain

Nippon Steel (5401) – $14.2B U.S. Steel Bet Targets Growth, Faces U.S. Market Maturity Risks

On July 17, 2025, S&P downgraded Nippon Steel to BBB with a negative outlook, citing debt strain from its $14 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel....

Rahul Jain

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)

Nippon Steel Placement - Cleanup by Posco Right After Expiry of Previous Deal

Posco Holdings is looking to sell its remaining stake in Nippon Steel (5401 JP) to raise up to US$154m via a cleanup block trade.

Akshat Shah

Nippon Steel: Integration First, Payoff Later — FY2025 Reset Delays the Synergy Story

​Business profit guidance cut due to lack of profit contribution from U.S. Steel, weakening overseas spreads, and one-off losses; integration drag...

Rahul Jain

Nippon Steel Placement - Relatively Small Deal with Recent Pick-Up in Momentum

Posco Holdings is looking to raise up to US$169m via selling some of its stake in Nippon Steel (5401 JP). In this note, we will talk about the...

Akshat Shah

Nippon Steel (5401.T) – Financial and Strategic Analysis Post-U.S. Steel Acquisition

​Nippon Steel's acquisition of U.S. Steel boosts North American presence but faces challenges in margins and costs. Watch synergy execution and...

Rahul Jain

Nippon Steel (5401) – $14.2B U.S. Steel Bet Targets Growth, Faces U.S. Market Maturity Risks

On July 17, 2025, S&P downgraded Nippon Steel to BBB with a negative outlook, citing debt strain from its $14 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel....

Rahul Jain

Business profit guidance cut due to lack of profit contribution from U.S. Steel, weakening overseas spreads, and one-off losses; integration drag...

Nippon Steel's acquisition of U.S. Steel boosts North American presence but faces challenges in margins and costs. Watch synergy execution and...

On July 17, 2025, S&P downgraded Nippon Steel to BBB with a negative outlook, citing debt strain from its $14 billion acquisition of U.S. Steel....