730 MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI Shares Sold by Bell Asset Management Ltd

Key Points

• Bell Asset Management reduced its MercadoLibre stake by 32.1% in the third quarter, selling 730 shares and retaining 1,544 shares valued at approximately $2.67 million.
• Institutional investors own 87.62% of MercadoLibre, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $2,251.88.
• MercadoLibre reported quarterly revenue of $10.17 billion, up 49.8% year over year, and earnings of $9.19 per share, exceeding analyst expectations.

Bell Asset Management Ltd decreased its stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report) by 32.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,544 shares of the company's stock after selling 730 shares during the quarter. Bell Asset Management Ltd's holdings in MercadoLibre were worth $2,669,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MELI. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of MercadoLibre by 12.8% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,988 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,436,000 after buying an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. boosted its holdings in MercadoLibre by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 18,518 shares of the company's stock worth $32,009,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the period. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in MercadoLibre by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,149 shares of the company's stock worth $1,986,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Apella Capital LLC purchased a new stake in MercadoLibre in the 3rd quarter worth $719,000. Finally, Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC bought a new stake in MercadoLibre during the third quarter valued at about $207,000. Institutional investors own 87.62% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. New Street Research started coverage on MercadoLibre in a research note on Wednesday, September 23rd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $2,450.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on MercadoLibre from $2,150.00 to $2,300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on MercadoLibre from $1,900.00 to $2,150.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of MercadoLibre from $1,950.00 to $2,000.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and set a $2,150.00 target price on shares of MercadoLibre in a research report on Thursday, September 3rd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $2,251.88.

MercadoLibre Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of MELI stock opened at $1,856.66 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $94.13 billion, a PE ratio of 50.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $1,864.15 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1,774.90. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a 1 year low of $1,495.00 and a 1 year high of $2,428.00.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $9.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.65 by $0.54. MercadoLibre had a return on equity of 26.54% and a net margin of 5.30%.The firm had revenue of $10.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $10.31 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 49.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that MercadoLibre, Inc. will post 38.29 earnings per share for the current year.

MercadoLibre Company Profile

MercadoLibre, Inc NASDAQ: MELI operates a technology platform serving commerce and financial-services customers across Latin America. Its online marketplace connects buyers and sellers, offering products across categories including electronics, apparel, home goods, automotive products and consumer packaged goods.

The company also provides a range of supporting services, including Mercado Pago, a digital payments platform that enables online and in-person transactions, money transfers and other financial services.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MELI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.