MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation, fifteen have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $2,842.9412.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on MELI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,600.00 to $2,650.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,800.00 to $2,900.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Dbs Bank upgraded MercadoLibre from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Susquehanna reduced their target price on MercadoLibre from $2,975.00 to $2,900.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Finally, Benchmark decreased their target price on MercadoLibre from $2,875.00 to $2,780.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th.

MercadoLibre Stock Up 4.7%

Shares of NASDAQ MELI opened at $2,153.75 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a market cap of $109.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.42. MercadoLibre has a 52 week low of $1,723.90 and a 52 week high of $2,645.22. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $2,049.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2,227.44.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $8.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.88 by ($1.56). MercadoLibre had a net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 39.03%. The company had revenue of $7.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $7.83 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 39.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that MercadoLibre will post 43.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Stelleo Tolda sold 246 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,047.88, for a total value of $503,778.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Emiliano Calemzuk sold 45 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,027.37, for a total transaction of $91,231.65. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 257 shares in the company, valued at $521,034.09. This represents a 14.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,136 shares of company stock worth $2,308,788. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of MercadoLibre

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Lavaca Capital LLC increased its stake in MercadoLibre by 140,201.3% in the second quarter. Lavaca Capital LLC now owns 1,066,290 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,786,888,000 after acquiring an additional 1,065,530 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in MercadoLibre by 803.4% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 333,455 shares of the company’s stock worth $671,665,000 after purchasing an additional 296,543 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of MercadoLibre in the 2nd quarter worth about $698,848,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its position in shares of MercadoLibre by 304.7% during the 2nd quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 255,103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $666,744,000 after purchasing an additional 192,071 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Flossbach Von Storch SE increased its position in shares of MercadoLibre by 1,669.4% during the 3rd quarter. Flossbach Von Storch SE now owns 181,719 shares of the company’s stock valued at $424,666,000 after purchasing an additional 171,449 shares during the last quarter. 87.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MercadoLibre Company Profile

MercadoLibre, Inc operates an integrated e-commerce and fintech ecosystem serving consumers and businesses across Latin America. The company provides an online marketplace that connects buyers and sellers for a wide range of goods and services, supported by tools for merchants, advertising, and classifieds. Over time MercadoLibre has expanded beyond its marketplace roots into complementary areas that support digital commerce end to end.

Key offerings include its marketplace platform and a suite of logistics and payment services.