AIA Group Ltd Sells 3,503 Shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI

Key Points

• AIA Group Ltd reduced its MercadoLibre stake by 35.5% in the first quarter, selling 3,503 shares and leaving it with 6,371 shares worth about $11.0 million.
• MercadoLibre reported strong revenue growth in its latest quarter, with revenue up 49% year over year to $8.85 billion, though earnings per share of $8.23 missed estimates.
• Analysts remain cautiously positive overall: the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus rating, but several firms recently lowered price targets and/or downgraded shares.

AIA Group Ltd trimmed its position in shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report) by 35.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,371 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,503 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd's holdings in MercadoLibre were worth $11,016,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brown Advisory Inc. increased its position in shares of MercadoLibre by 2,494.9% during the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 15,362 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,943,000 after acquiring an additional 14,770 shares during the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC boosted its position in MercadoLibre by 238.3% in the fourth quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 2,030 shares of the company's stock worth $4,089,000 after purchasing an additional 1,430 shares during the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association boosted its position in MercadoLibre by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 11,011 shares of the company's stock worth $22,179,000 after purchasing an additional 1,083 shares during the last quarter. Deepwater Asset Management LLC grew its stake in MercadoLibre by 38.6% in the 4th quarter. Deepwater Asset Management LLC now owns 7,765 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,641,000 after purchasing an additional 2,164 shares during the period. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in MercadoLibre by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas now owns 40,184 shares of the company's stock valued at $80,941,000 after purchasing an additional 6,200 shares during the period. 87.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Alejandro Nicolas Aguzin acquired 600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $1,655.93 per share, for a total transaction of $993,558.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,355 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,867,505.15. The trade was a 12.62% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.26% of the company's stock.

MercadoLibre Trading Down 2.3%

Shares of MELI stock opened at $1,813.91 on Friday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $1,681.90 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $1,822.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.14. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a 1 year low of $1,495.00 and a 1 year high of $2,548.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.87, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.35.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $8.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.75 by ($0.52). The company had revenue of $8.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.29 billion. MercadoLibre had a return on equity of 29.58% and a net margin of 6.04%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 49.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $9.74 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that MercadoLibre, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on MELI shares. Daiwa Securities Group cut MercadoLibre from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $1,800.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,100.00 to $1,900.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of MercadoLibre from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Benchmark lowered their price objective on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,780.00 to $2,380.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,400.00 to $2,350.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $2,258.67.

MercadoLibre 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.

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