Alberta Investment Management Corp Lowers Stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI)

Key Points

• Alberta Investment Management Corp reduced its position in MercadoLibre, Inc. by 9.4%, owning 34,818 shares worth approximately $67.9 million after selling 3,631 shares.
• During the first quarter, several large investors increased their positions in MercadoLibre, with US Bancorp DE leading at a 36.8% increase.
• MercadoLibre reported $9.74 earnings per share for the quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $7.82, alongside a year-over-year revenue growth of 37.0% to $5.94 billion.

Alberta Investment Management Corp trimmed its position in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report) by 9.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,818 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,631 shares during the quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp owned about 0.07% of MercadoLibre worth $67,925,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Key Financial Inc purchased a new position in shares of MercadoLibre during the first quarter worth $25,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Covestor Ltd acquired a new stake in MercadoLibre in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Close Asset Management Ltd grew its position in shares of MercadoLibre by 366.7% in the first quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 14 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.62% of the company's stock.

MercadoLibre Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of MELI traded up $2.03 on Friday, hitting $2,375.92. 375,200 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 256,589. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a 1 year low of $1,646.00 and a 1 year high of $2,645.22. The stock's 50 day moving average is $2,455.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $2,226.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $120.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $9.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.82 by $1.92. The business had revenue of $5.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.55 billion. MercadoLibre had a return on equity of 48.46% and a net margin of 9.21%. The business's revenue was up 37.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $6.78 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MercadoLibre, Inc. will post 43.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on MELI. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,900.00 to $2,700.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,640.00 to $3,000.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of MercadoLibre from $3,100.00 to $3,000.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Susquehanna reissued a "positive" rating and set a $2,975.00 price objective (up from $2,840.00) on shares of MercadoLibre in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MercadoLibre has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $2,707.50.

MercadoLibre Company Profile

MercadoLibre, Inc operates online commerce platforms in the United States. It operates Mercado Libre Marketplace, an automated online commerce platform that enables businesses, merchants, and individuals to list merchandise and conduct sales and purchases digitally; and Mercado Pago FinTech platform, a financial technology solution platform, which facilitates transactions on and off its marketplaces by providing a mechanism that allows its users to send and receive payments online, as well as allows users to transfer money through their websites or on the apps.