AFYA stock rises as direct US listing bypasses ADR fees

American retail investors looking to diversify abroad often face a hidden tax: the ongoing administrative and custody fees associated with American Depositary Receipts (ADRs). However, a select group of foreign companies has bypassed this system entirely by executing direct primary listings on US exchanges.

One of those companies, Brazilian medical education giant Afya, saw its stock rise 3.45% to close at $10.50 on November 6, 2026, according to Nasdaq market data. By listing directly on the Nasdaq, Afya allows US brokerage accounts to hold actual common shares rather than depositary receipts, eliminating the pass-through fees that typically eat into long-term international returns.

Based in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Afya is the country's largest private provider of medical education. The company operates an integrated ecosystem that spans undergraduate medical programs, residency preparation, and digital physician software used by approximately one-third of all doctors in Brazil. Its business model relies on highly predictable, multi-year tuition fees from medical students, which has insulated the company from broader macroeconomic volatility.

Regulatory Tailwinds and Earnings Outlook

The company's operational footprint has expanded steadily under the oversight of Brazil's Ministry of Education, which regulates the allocation of medical school seats to maintain quality standards. On September 16, 2026, Afya announced that the Ministry had authorized an additional 17 medical seats at its campus in the state of Acre, bringing its total approved seats across Brazil to 3,785.

This steady capacity expansion feeds directly into the company's financial pipeline. According to estimates compiled by MarketBeat, Wall Street analysts expect Afya to post earnings per share of $0.38 on revenue of $190.41 million when it reports its third-quarter 2026 financial results on November 12, 2026. In its previous quarterly report on August 14, 2026, the company beat consensus expectations with earnings per share of $0.43.

While Afya has built a highly defensive business model, investors face risks tied to local regulatory decisions regarding higher education funding and the pace of new campus approvals by the federal government. Furthermore, because the company's revenues are earned in Brazilian reals, US investors remain exposed to currency fluctuations when those earnings are translated back into US dollars.

In your brokerage app

Investors can buy shares of Afya Limited directly in US dollars on the Nasdaq under the ticker AFYA. Because this is a primary US listing and not an ADR, the shares can be traded on major retail platforms like Fidelity, Schwab, or Robinhood without incurring foreign depositary service fees.