Ashford Capital Management Inc. Has $2.09 Million Stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI

Key Points

• Ashford Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. by 11.0%, holding 1,071 shares valued at approximately $2.1 million after selling 132 shares in the first quarter.
• MercadoLibre reported earnings with an EPS of $10.31, missing expectations, but achieved revenue of $6.79 billion, surpassing the consensus estimate by 33.8% year-over-year.
• Research analysts have issued a range of ratings for MercadoLibre, with an average target price of $2,817.22, reflecting a generally positive outlook for the stock.

Ashford Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report) by 11.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,071 shares of the company's stock after selling 132 shares during the period. Ashford Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in MercadoLibre were worth $2,089,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co increased its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co now owns 999 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,699,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. Formidable Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Formidable Asset Management LLC now owns 160 shares of the company's stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 118 shares of the company's stock valued at $201,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 3.1% in the first quarter. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC now owns 168 shares of the company's stock valued at $328,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 8.3% in the first quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 65 shares of the company's stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. 87.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on MELI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,600.00 to $2,700.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $2,700.00 price objective on shares of MercadoLibre in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Barclays lowered 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. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,900.00 to $2,850.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $2,817.22.

MercadoLibre Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MELI traded up $0.62 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $2,472.91. 292,481 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 386,617. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a one year low of $1,646.00 and a one year high of $2,645.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.38 billion, a PE ratio of 61.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.49. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $2,414.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $2,294.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.20.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The company reported $10.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $12.01 by ($1.70). The business had revenue of $6.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $10.48 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate 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.