MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI Shares Acquired by Sarasin & Partners LLP

Key Points

• Sarasin & Partners LLP increased its holdings in MercadoLibre by 24.9%, owning a total of 76,303 shares, making it the 21st largest holding for the fund.
• The company reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $10.31 for the most recent quarter, which missed the consensus estimate of $12.01, even as revenue grew by 33.8% year-over-year to $6.79 billion.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on MercadoLibre, with one strong buy, fourteen buy, and two hold ratings, and an average price target of $2,817.22.

Sarasin & Partners LLP boosted its stake in shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report) by 24.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 76,303 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,201 shares during the period. MercadoLibre makes up approximately 2.0% of Sarasin & Partners LLP's portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Sarasin & Partners LLP owned approximately 0.15% of MercadoLibre worth $199,428,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Key Financial Inc purchased a new position in MercadoLibre during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in MercadoLibre during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in MercadoLibre during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Close Asset Management Ltd raised its stake in MercadoLibre by 366.7% during the first quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 14 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group raised its stake in MercadoLibre by 650.0% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 15 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.62% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Scotiabank assumed coverage on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Monday, July 28th. They issued a "sector outperform" rating and a $3,500.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $2,800.00 target price on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $2,875.00 target price on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $2,700.00 target price on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Friday, August 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $3,000.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $2,817.22.

MercadoLibre Stock Down 1.0%

MercadoLibre stock traded down $24.03 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $2,452.34. 416,882 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 367,642. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a 1 year low of $1,646.00 and a 1 year high of $2,645.22. The firm has a market cap of $124.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.18. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $2,380.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $2,313.86.

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

About MercadoLibre

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.