The market value of Telefónica Brazil has reached the market capitalization of its parent company, Telefónica, for the first time in its history, a new sign of the Spanish operator’s difficulties in winning the support of investors. The rise of the telco Spanish this Friday, of 1.9%, was not enough to maintain the podium of market value. Telefónica Brazil advances 1.4% at the close of the session in Europe.
Telefónica shares, the largest telco of Spain, while the Brazilian subsidiary has risen 45%. This evolution has given Telefónica a market capitalization of 19,025 million euros at the end of Friday’s session, compared to 19,200 million euros—at the close of the European session—of its subsidiary listed in São Paulo. Already on Thursday, at the close of the Brazilian market, there was overtaking: Telefónica was worth 18,800 million compared to the 19,000 million of the subsidiary. Telefónica controls about 77% of the Latin American company, which operates under the Vivo brand, and Brazil is its second largest market.
Telefónica shares have underperformed their competitors over the past year, with the Stoxx 600 Telecom index advancing 10% in 12 months, and they have also underperformed the Spanish benchmark index, the Ibex, which with a 50% rise was the best performer in Europe last year.
The Brazilian subsidiary is one of the jewels in the crown of the Spanish group, and in fact it is outside the divestment plan focused on reducing the group’s debt. In fact, the losses derived from sales in Argentina, Peru, Ecuador and Uruguay have left Telefónica’s accounts in the red: until the end of September 2025 of 1,080 million euros, compared to the profits of 954 million that it obtained in the same period of the previous year. In that nine-month period, in reais (690 million euros), 13.4% more than in the same period of the previous year.
Sanitation is also behind the behavior on the Stock Market, since in the presentation of the strategic plan, Marc Murtra, the president of the company who took office in January 2025, revealed a , in addition to a cut in free cash flow forecasts. The company’s objective is to regain the pulse of growth and consolidate the main markets where it operates, although at the moment it has not detailed specific plans. Also within the framework of the adjustments are the , an ERE that will have a cost of 2,500 million for 5,500 employee departures.
