California Public Employees Retirement System Lowers Stock Position in MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI

Key Points

• CalPERS reduced its MercadoLibre stake by 24.2% in the first quarter, selling 20,411 shares and leaving it with 64,008 shares worth about $110.7 million.
• Insider buying continued as Director Alejandro Nicolas Aguzin purchased 600 shares at about $1,655.93 each, boosting his holdings by 12.62%.
• Analysts remain cautiously positive: several firms cut price targets, but the stock still carries a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average target of $2,258.67.

California Public Employees Retirement System trimmed its position in shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report) by 24.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 64,008 shares of the company's stock after selling 20,411 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.13% of MercadoLibre worth $110,671,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Zhang Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 31.4% in the 1st quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 1,133 shares of the company's stock worth $1,959,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares during the period. John G Ullman & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre during the 1st quarter worth about $2,879,000. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC increased its position in MercadoLibre by 28.3% during the 1st quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 757 shares of the company's stock worth $1,309,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Main Street Group LTD purchased a new position in MercadoLibre in the first quarter valued at approximately $69,000. Finally, Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. lifted its position in MercadoLibre by 738.2% during the first quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. now owns 1,601 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,768,000 after buying an additional 1,410 shares in the last quarter. 87.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Alejandro Nicolas Aguzin bought 600 shares of MercadoLibre stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $1,655.93 per share, with a total value of $993,558.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 5,355 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,867,505.15. This represents a 12.62% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MELI. Barclays lowered their price target on MercadoLibre from $2,500.00 to $2,300.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on MercadoLibre from $2,100.00 to $1,900.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Raymond James Financial set a $2,000.00 price target on MercadoLibre in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Benchmark decreased their price target on MercadoLibre from $2,780.00 to $2,380.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of MercadoLibre from $1,950.00 to $2,000.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $2,258.67.

MercadoLibre Stock Performance

Shares of MercadoLibre stock opened at $1,813.91 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.16. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a 1 year low of $1,495.00 and a 1 year high of $2,548.50. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $1,681.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1,822.69. The firm has a market cap of $91.97 billion, a PE ratio of 47.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.35.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $8.23 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $8.75 by ($0.52). The firm had revenue of $8.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $9.74 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that MercadoLibre, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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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