LUPA3: quote, dividends and indicators for Lupatech

Lupatech S.A., traded on B3 under the ticker LUPA3, is a Brazilian industrial company whose trajectory began in 1980 with the founding of Microinox in Caxias do Sul (RS). Originally focused on casting investment-cast steel parts, the company expanded its activities over the decades through organic investments and successive acquisitions. In 1984, it consolidated its entry into the industrial valves segment with the creation of Valmicro and, from 1987 onward, began receiving venture capital investments, which supported a cycle of growth and diversification. In the 1990s, in addition to expanding its technology portfolio with the founding of Steelinject, the company began an internationalization process, acquiring businesses in Argentina related to the valve segment and, indirectly, to the oil and gas chain.

From the 2000s onward, Lupatech intensified its acquisition strategy, incorporating Metalúrgica Nova Americana (MNA) in 2000, specialized in ball valves for the oil chain, and later Carbonox in 2005, which added investment casting capacity in Veranópolis (RS). In 2006, it carried out its initial public offering of shares on B3, raising funds to finance industrial expansion and new businesses. In that same period, it acquired Metalúrgica Ipê (Mipel) and resumed industrial operations in Argentina, as well as entering the offshore mooring ropes segment by purchasing the business of Cordoaria São Leopoldo. Between 2007 and 2008, the company consolidated a significant presence in services for the oil industry with the acquisition of companies such as Gasoil Serviços, K&S and Fiberware, while also raising funds in the international market through the issuance of perpetual bonds.

The leveraged growth cycle ended up generating high indebtedness which, combined with complex acquisitions such as that of the Brazilian operations of San Antonio Internacional in 2012, put pressure on Lupatech’s financial structure. The partial conversion of debt into shares and efforts to rebalance capital were not enough to offset the effects of unexpected liabilities and operational deterioration. From 2014 onward, the combination of a sector crisis in oil, falling international prices and domestic impacts associated with the Lava Jato operation undermined the premises of the out-of-court restructuring plan. In 2015, the company entered Judicial Reorganization, restructuring debts, selling assets abroad and discontinuing less strategic operations, especially in oilfield services. This reorientation led to a stronger focus on manufacturing, a process that culminated in the formal closure of the Judicial Reorganization in March 2023.

Currently, Lupatech LUPA3 structures its activities in two major manufacturing business areas: the metal-mechanical segment and the segment based on high-performance synthetic fibers. In the metal-mechanical field, the company groups together the manufacture of industrial valves, other equipment and steel casting activities, operating with different forming and machining technologies. In the synthetic fibers segment, it produces high-performance ropes for naval, offshore and industrial applications, as well as items in composite materials, such as pipes and poles in glass fiber-reinforced polymer. The industrial operations are organized into specialized manufacturing units, with production processes adapted to each product line and integrated into a supply chain that combines domestic and imported inputs.

Lupatech’s units in Brazil play distinct roles within the portfolio. In São Leopoldo (RS), Lupatech Ropes is dedicated to manufacturing synthetic fiber ropes for maritime applications, towing, lifting operations, mooring hawsers and anchoring oil platforms in deep and ultra-deep waters. In Nova Odessa (SP), Lupatech MNA produces ball, gate, globe and check valves to order, with a main focus on oil and gas applications, under the MNA and Tecval brands, as well as other equipment aimed at the oil industry. Also in Nova Odessa, Mipel manufactures valves for controlling fluids and vapors, registers, faucets, actuators and industrial automation systems, and also acts as a distributor of these products, both manufactured in-house and by third parties, including components and spare parts.

The Veranópolis (RS) unit, under the Valmicro brand, concentrates the production and sale of industrial valves for various segments, using the Valmicro and Mipel brands and both direct and indirect sales channels. This plant serves sectors such as chemicals, pharmaceuticals, oil and gas, food, machinery and equipment, pulp and paper and petrochemicals, among others. Through Mipel Microfusão, located in the same complex, the company supplies investment-cast components to customers in multiple industrial sectors, leveraging its expertise in precision casting. In Feliz (RS), Lupatech Fiber Liners produces glass fiber-reinforced polymer pipes, used for internal lining of oil production and water injection pipes, as well as glass fiber-reinforced polymer poles for electric power distribution and transmission, public lighting, crossarms and service entrance poles. This combination of units shows a portfolio with a strong presence in the oil and gas chain, but also with relevant applications in electrical infrastructure and industry in general.

In terms of products, Lupatech derives most of its revenue from manufactured goods. Between 2022 and 2024, the products segment accounted for more than 99% of consolidated net revenue, with emphasis on industrial valves (ball, control, butterfly, gate, globe and check), pneumatic actuators, special valves, Y-type strainers, expansion joints, spare parts, synthetic fiber ropes, pipes, liners, poles and other composite items. The services segment, which accounts for a smaller percentage of revenue, includes projects and development of components in composite materials, as well as solutions for internal lining and refurbishment of oil production and produced water injection pipes. The production process combines lost-wax casting, precision machining, assembly, strict quality testing, braiding of high-performance synthetic yarns and filament winding techniques for manufacturing glass fiber pipes and poles.

Lupatech’s customer base is predominantly corporate and concentrated in industrial sectors with higher technology and capital intensity. Petrobras and its subsidiaries stand out as one of the main buyers, often accounting for more than 10% of annual net revenue, with an impact mainly on the valves business geared to the oil and gas chain. In addition to Petrobras, the company serves engineering, construction and procurement (EPC) firms involved in building FPSOs, gas transportation and distribution operators, other oil companies, purchasers of cast parts and industries in the chemical, food, pharmaceutical, pulp and paper and machinery and equipment segments. Sales are conducted through direct channels with major customers and via resellers and distributors in certain niches, supported by in-house sales teams and commercial agents. Geographically, most revenue is generated in Brazil, with occasional exports to countries such as China, Kuwait and other markets, which represented a smaller fraction of total revenue between 2022 and 2024.

From a regulatory standpoint, Lupatech operates in an industrial environment subject to licensing at the municipal, state and federal levels. Its plants depend on permits and periodic renewals, mainly related to urban and environmental aspects, although the company itself considers its activities not to be highly polluting. Obtaining and maintaining environmental licenses has become progressively more complex, with the occasional requirement of counterparts such as civil works in the surroundings of the facilities, adding layers of regulatory management. Operations do not depend on public concessions or on licensing of third-party patents on a significant scale; the company maintains registered trademarks in Brazil and occasionally seeks patent protection for certain elements of products and manufacturing processes. Regarding the environmental, social and governance (ESG) agenda, Lupatech does not publish specific reports, does not conduct greenhouse gas emission inventories and has not, to date, adopted formal materiality matrices or ESG key performance indicators, which is internally justified by the recent financial restructuring context and the activity level of its manufacturing units.

Lupatech’s common shares, identified by the ticker LUPA3, remain listed and traded on B3, representing the main avenue for raising funds in the Brazilian capital market. The company operates as a supplier of industrial components and solutions in advanced materials, focused on oil and gas, process industry and infrastructure segments, maintaining a set of integrated manufacturing operations in the South and Southeast of the country. Its trajectory combines phases of expansion through acquisitions and internationalization, financial restructurings and a strategic repositioning toward manufacturing businesses, notably valves, synthetic ropes and composite materials for specialized industrial applications.