Martin Currie Ltd. Sells 4,852 Shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI

Key Points

• Martin Currie Ltd. has reduced its stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. by 11.5%, now holding 37,373 shares after selling 4,852 shares in the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors have increased their positions in MercadoLibre, including Capital International Investors with a 38.7% increase during the fourth quarter.
• MercadoLibre's recent quarterly earnings showed an EPS of $10.31, missing estimates, but revenue reached $6.79 billion, exceeding expectations by $220 million.

Martin Currie Ltd. reduced its position in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report) by 11.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,373 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,852 shares during the quarter. MercadoLibre accounts for about 2.9% of Martin Currie Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Martin Currie Ltd. owned approximately 0.07% of MercadoLibre worth $72,910,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Banco Santander S.A. boosted its holdings in MercadoLibre by 221.9% during the 1st quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 2,746 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,357,000 after acquiring an additional 1,893 shares during the period. Prospect Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in MercadoLibre by 41.7% during the 1st quarter. Prospect Financial Services LLC now owns 340 shares of the company's stock valued at $663,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Stratos Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in MercadoLibre during the 1st quarter valued at about $203,000. JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd boosted its holdings in MercadoLibre by 43.6% during the 4th quarter. JARISLOWSKY FRASER Ltd now owns 3,249 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,525,000 after acquiring an additional 987 shares during the period. Finally, Avant Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in MercadoLibre during the 4th quarter valued at about $316,000. 87.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MercadoLibre Stock Up 3.1%

MELI traded up $72.50 during trading on Friday, hitting $2,392.30. 411,196 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 363,335. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $2,414.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $2,263.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a 12-month low of $1,646.00 and a 12-month high of $2,645.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $121.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.08, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.46.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The company reported $10.31 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $12.01 by ($1.70). MercadoLibre had a net margin of 8.52% and a return on equity of 43.06%. The business had revenue of $6.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $10.48 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 33.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that MercadoLibre, Inc. will post 43.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MELI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of MercadoLibre in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of MercadoLibre in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Daiwa Capital Markets began coverage on MercadoLibre in a research report on Friday, August 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $3,000.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $2,800.00 price target on shares of MercadoLibre in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered MercadoLibre from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $2,795.00.

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.