Americanas shares soar more than 20% after the end of judicial recovery

Lojas Americanas' shares soar this Tuesday (20), after the Rio de Janeiro Court ended the retailer's judicial recovery, in a decision announced on Monday night (19).

At around 12:40 p.m., shares rose 21.94%, to R$7.28. At the day's high, they rose 25%, to R$7.50.

The decision was taken by judge Arthur Eduardo Magalhães Ferreira, who considered the obligations of the judicial recovery plan due within two years after its approval, in February 2024, fulfilled. The company had requested recovery in January 2023.

The closure of the process, however, does not eliminate creditor dissatisfaction. According to the magistrate, they can still point out non-compliance with the plan or request the company's bankruptcy.

The main resistance comes from creditors with securities in foreign currency, the so-called bondholders. They claim that their credits were converted from dollars to reais without authorization, which would have resulted in lower payments.

In a statement, the CEO of Americanas, Fernando Soares, stated that the company implemented a readjustment plan in the last two years and presented increasing profitability indicators. According to him, operating earnings increased by R$500 million in the period, while the company recorded growth of 9.3% in the first half of 2026 and a 10.3% increase in gross revenue per square meter in the same period.

"Americanas suffered through the entire process, but comes out stronger and with renewed vigor to regain its position of relevance in Brazilian physical retail," said Soares.

When it filed for judicial recovery, in January 2023, Americanas reported having a debt of around R$43 billion and more than 16,300 creditors. The request was presented days after the revelation of "accounting inconsistencies" worth R$20 billion in its balance sheet.

The irregularities involved, among other things, cooperative advertising budget contracts (VPC), used to reduce the accounting of obligations with suppliers through fictitious credits. The fraud came to light amid the company's financial difficulties, which faced high interest rates and depended on credit lines from banks.