If you're willing to travel far to find something "new" for your portfolio, you might want to try Nu Holdings (NU 3.87%) on for size. The fast-growing provider of financial services is a rising star in its home country of Brazil. It's early in its expansion across Latin America and even has the greatest investor of our time onboard.
The stock isn't cheap. Expectations are high, given its lofty valuation. However, if you're OK with a high-risk profile and looking for a fintech stock that's growing substantially faster than the stateside household names in this niche, consider taking a small position in the parent company of Brazil's Nubank. Shares are trading in the mid-teens, so even $100 can buy a handful of shares.
It's a Nu look
The fintech stocks that most investors know are rallying lately but still trade for a quarter of their all-time highs set three summers ago. Nu is a welcome exception to the gruel. The stock has nearly quadrupled since the start of last year, currently trading within 1% of the all-time high the shares scored last week.
Nu's rapid ascent in Brazil is turning heads. Nubank launched in Brazil just a decade ago, but 56% of the country's adult population already have an account. It started with its now iconic purple credit card that offered the country's largely unbanked citizenry a payment option with no annual fees and often low spending limits at the start. With a foot in the door, it's been easy for Nu to expand its offerings and cash in on the improving spending power of its growing base.
There are no physical branches. Everything is managed through its namesake app.
The combination of its growing audience and the deepening relationship is generating some pretty explosive growth. Nubank's user base currently stands at 104.5 million, a 25% increase over the past year. However, its average monthly revenue per user has risen 30% to $11.20 in that time.
It stacks up to deliver $2.8 billion in its latest quarter, a 65% surge over the past year. (The two largest U.S. fintech players grew their top lines by 8% and 19% for the same quarter.)
Let's flip to the other end of the income statement. Nu isn't some deficit-saddled speedster sacrificing near-term profitability for making land-grab headlines. It's in the black, and the bottom line is growing even faster than the top line.
It spends an average of just $7 a month to acquire a new account, and costs just $0.90 a month to service an account. Remember that $11.20 a month average in revenue per user? It means that a new customer is profitable by the end of the first month.
Adjusted net income skyrocketed 131% to $562.5 million in the second quarter, topping a 20% net margin for the first time. It probably won't be the last time.
Image source: Getty Images.
Banking outside of Brazil
It's been five years since Nu rolled out in Mexico, and it entered Colombia a year later. The dynamics are compelling.
When Nu launched its platform in Colombia -- Latin America's third-most populous nation -- back in 2020, 70% to 85% of the country's transactions were being done in cash. Despite more than half of the country owning a smartphone and 72% of Colombians having internet access, the country wasn't hopping on the convenience and security of credit cards.
Nu's push into Mexico and Colombia is still early, and it's not moving the needle just yet. However, as it broadens its product offerings to include more banking products in new markets, the expansion is succeeding. Customer deposits in Mexico and Colombia are growing faster than in Nu's home country.
Nu also drew some interest from one investor you should know. Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway got in just as the Brazilian fintech was ready to go public at $9 in 2021. It's not your typical Buffett stock, but Berkshire Hathaway continues to own the shares. It's obviously been a top performer on the scorecard since the start of last year.
Nu Holdings isn't cheap. It's currently trading for 47 times trailing earnings, but that multiple drops to 24 if you look out to next year's analyst profit target. Its market cap is also larger than Brazil's biggest traditional banking institution, but it's clear that Nu is setting its sights on more than just Brazil, if not eventually more than just Latin America.
Investing in Brazil is risky. Fintech is risky. There's no free lunch, but everywhere you look, Nu seems pretty appetizing, even after its strong run.
