John G Ullman & Associates Inc. Takes Position in MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI

Key Points

• John G Ullman & Associates opened a new position in MercadoLibre during the first quarter, buying 1,665 shares valued at about $2.88 million.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with 87.62% of MercadoLibre shares held by institutions; meanwhile, director Alejandro Nicolas Aguzin also bought 600 shares in May.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but generally positive: MercadoLibre has a Moderate Buy consensus rating, though several firms recently cut targets or downgraded the stock. The company also reported strong revenue growth of 49% year over year, even as earnings per share came in below expectations.

John G Ullman & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 1,665 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,879,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in MercadoLibre during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Purpose Unlimited Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre in the second quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. 87.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Alejandro Nicolas Aguzin bought 600 shares of MercadoLibre stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $1,655.93 per share, with a total value of $993,558.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,355 shares in the company, valued at $8,867,505.15. The trade was a 12.62% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of MercadoLibre in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Daiwa Securities Group downgraded shares of MercadoLibre from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $1,800.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on 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. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on MercadoLibre from $2,600.00 to $2,450.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised MercadoLibre from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $2,800.00 to $2,600.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $2,258.67.

MercadoLibre Trading Down 2.3%

NASDAQ MELI opened at $1,813.91 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $1,681.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,822.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a market cap of $91.97 billion, a PE ratio of 47.87, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 1.35. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a 12 month low of $1,495.00 and a 12 month high of $2,548.50.

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 the consensus estimate of $8.75 by ($0.52). MercadoLibre had a return on equity of 29.58% and a net margin of 6.04%.The company had revenue of $8.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $9.74 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 49.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that MercadoLibre, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current year.

About MercadoLibre

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.

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.