Anima shoots more than 27% after selling a share in Inspirali for R$ 1 billion

Shares of higher education company Ânima rose 27.07% on the São Paulo stock exchange this Tuesday (30), after the company announced the sale of participation in its medicine unit.

Ânima, owner of brands such as São Judas and Anhembi Morumbi, reached an agreement to sell a 25% stake in its medicine subsidiary Inspirali to Brazilian investment company specializing in healthcare DNA Capital, according to a relevant fact disclosed by the company the day before. The transaction is worth R$1 billion in cash.

This Tuesday’s performance may be the biggest in the company’s history on the stock exchange, a statistic that belongs to the closing of October 7, 2015, when the shares took off almost 17.4%.

XP analysts rated the transaction “very positive,” and projected the deal should drive the company’s growth and profitability. XP reiterated purchase recommendation for the paper.

Larissa Pérez and Rafael Barros also wrote that the deal could unlock value for Ânima. “A sum-of-the-parts valuation may reveal more value,” they said, noting that one of the conditions of the deal is to make Inspirali a separate company.

The value of BRL 1 billion for the asset arose from an evaluation, in mutual agreement between the parties, of a firm value to Inspirali of BRL 5 billion, according to Ânima. The amount was, however, reduced from 2 billion reais corresponding to the estimated debt for the acquisition of medical schools to be allocated to Inspirali by Anima at the end of the operation.

For analysts at BTG Pactual including Samuel Alves, the assessment confirms the bank’s thesis that Ânima’s shares are undervalued. BTG also reiterated buy recommendation.

Inspirali, according to Ânima, is the second largest medical education company in Brazil, with around 10 thousand students. In the first nine months of this year, the unit had net income of R$ 436.6 million, informed the company.

In a conference call about the transaction, the company’s financial vice president, André Tavares Andrade, stated that an Inspirali IPO “without a doubt, is an operation that has to be considered”.

“The alliance with DNA strengthens Inspirali…so that, in an eventual Inspirali IPO, we are much stronger,” said the executive. “Without a doubt, an Inspirali IPO will always be on our radar.”

Also in the sector, the education company Yduqs rose 0.3% and was one of the only shares in the blue of the Ibovespa. Anima is not part of the index.