Spanish Fund Azvalor Builds 4.5% Stake in Brazil Mall Group Iguatemi

BRAZIL · MARKETS

A Spanish value investor now sits among Iguatemi’s largest outside shareholders, alongside BlackRock and Norway’s sovereign fund.

Azvalor, a Madrid asset manager, has built an Iguatemi stake of about 4.5% in the Brazilian shopping-mall group. The position was disclosed in notices Iguatemi sent to the market on Friday 18 September 2026.

What the Iguatemi stake filings show

Azvalor Asset Management, based in Madrid, holds about 4.48% of Iguatemi’s share capital, according to B3 shareholder data. That works out to 8.28% of the preferred shares and 2.34% of the voting shares.

Iguatemi published the notices on Friday 18 September 2026. Bloomberg Línea reported the holding on Tuesday 22 September, with figures drawn from B3 records.

BlackRock also raised its position. On 15 September 2026 it held 21,785,760 preferred shares, or about 5.004% of that class.

Both managers told Iguatemi the purchases are for investment only. Neither seeks to change control or the way the company is run.

The Iguatemi stake is therefore passive in law and in stated intent. It buys profits, not a say in decisions.

Who Azvalor is

Azvalor was founded in Madrid in 2015 by former managers of the Spanish firm Bestinver. It manages about 5 billion euros (US$5.9 billion) for roughly 30,000 clients, according to its website.

The firm follows value investing. It buys companies it believes trade below their worth, then waits for the market to agree.

Azvalor told Bloomberg Línea it began buying just over a year ago, after talks with the company. It said it does not want a board seat.

The manager said it does not build positions around forecasts for interest rates or growth. It said it studies companies one by one.

Why the five percent rule matters

Brazil’s securities regulator is the Comissão de Valores Mobiliários (CVM), the market watchdog. Its Resolution 44 requires notice when a holder crosses 5% of a class of shares.

The threshold applies by class, not to total capital. That is why a holding worth about 4.5% of the whole company still triggered a notice.

Iguatemi trades mainly as units. Each unit bundles one voting share with two preferred shares that carry three times the dividend.

Azvalor crossed the line on the preferred class, at 8.28%. Further notices fall due at 10% and 15% of a class.

So the Iguatemi stake became public because of the class rule. A flat 4.5% of the whole company would not have done it.

Who still controls Iguatemi

The Jereissati family keeps control through the voting shares. GJ Investimentos e Participações holds 64.47% of them, according to B3 data.

Pedro Jereissati is chairman of the board, a role recorded in board minutes dated 8 September 2026. The company’s own investor pages list the same title.

Other foreign investors were already on the register. Norway’s Norges Bank holds 5.82% of the preferred shares and Itaú USA Asset Management 5.15%.

The largest preferred holder is Brazilian: the manager Radar, with 9.49%. So the new money joins a crowded register rather than reshaping it.

Iguatemi holds interests in 15 shopping centres and two premium outlets, by its own count. It also manages the malls it part-owns.

Why this matters for expats and investors

If you live in Latin America and hold Brazilian shares, this is a signal about pricing. Long-term foreign money is buying a premium mall portfolio at current levels.

Iguatemi was valued at about R$7.6 billion (US$1.49 billion) on the B3 exchange. Conversions here use about 5.11 reais to the dollar, at 23 September 2026 rates.

The preferred shares pay three times the dividend of the voting shares. They also carry no vote, so the income comes without influence.

What is not known is Azvalor’s cost, its target size or its timing. The firm said any change would depend on the share price and other options.

An Iguatemi stake of this size does not move strategy on its own. It does show where long-horizon money sees value today.

How the shares have traded

Iguatemi units were quoted near R$26.72 (US$5.23) around midday on Tuesday 22 September. They are up about 5.5% in 2026, against 15.9% for the Ibovespa index.

That is below the April high of R$30.43 (US$5.95). Bank of America cut its target to R$30 (US$5.87) on 18 August 2026 and stayed neutral.

JP Morgan is more positive, with a December 2026 target of R$36 (US$7.05). It keeps a buy-equivalent rating.

In the first half of 2026, tenant sales across the portfolio reached R$12.3 billion (US$2.41 billion). That was 8.2% higher than a year earlier.

What to watch next

The next marker would be a fresh notice if Azvalor crosses 10% of the preferred class. Such notices reach the market through the CVM and Iguatemi’s investor pages.

Separately, Iguatemi agreed in August to sell minority stakes in five properties to the TRX Real Estate fund. The price was R$876.1 million (US$171 million).

That sale was signed as a binding proposal on 7 August 2026. It still needs antitrust clearance and final documents before it closes.

For now, the register shows patient foreign capital settling in. The next filings will show whether it grows.

More: Brazil news in English, every day from The Rio Times.

Frequently Asked Questions

How big is the Azvalor holding in Iguatemi?

About 4.48% of total capital, made up of 8.28% of the preferred shares and 2.34% of the voting shares.

Does this change who controls Iguatemi?

No. The Jereissati family holds 64.47% of the voting shares, and both Azvalor and BlackRock filed as passive investors.

Why did a 4.5% holding require a notice?

Brazil’s CVM Resolution 44 counts the 5% threshold by share class. Azvalor passed 5% of the preferred shares.

Sources: Iguatemi S.A. notices to the market, 18 September 2026, and its notice of 7 August 2026; CVM Resolution 44; Iguatemi investor relations; B3 shareholder data; Bloomberg Línea; ADVFN; Valor Econômico.