Natixis Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI)

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in MercadoLibre by 4.7%, owning 15,593 shares worth approximately $30.42 million as of the latest reporting period.
• Analysts have varying opinions on MercadoLibre, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price averaging $2,690.29, despite some downgrades from firms like Benchmark.
• MercadoLibre reported strong quarterly results with an EPS of $9.74, exceeding expectations, and a revenue increase of 37% year-over-year, amounting to $5.94 billion.

Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report) by 4.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,593 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 707 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC's holdings in MercadoLibre were worth $30,420,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Key Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC bought a new position in MercadoLibre in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in MercadoLibre during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Covestor Ltd bought a new stake in MercadoLibre during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Close Asset Management Ltd lifted 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 last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.62% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on MELI. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of MercadoLibre in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price objective on MercadoLibre from $2,900.00 to $2,700.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered MercadoLibre from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on MercadoLibre from $2,640.00 to $3,000.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $2,800.00 target price (up previously from $2,450.00) on shares of MercadoLibre in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MercadoLibre has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $2,707.50.

MercadoLibre Trading Up 0.1%

NASDAQ:MELI traded up $2.03 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $2,375.92. The stock had a trading volume of 375,200 shares, compared to its average volume of 256,589. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a one year low of $1,646.00 and a one year high of $2,645.22. The company has a market capitalization of $120.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.43, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.46. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $2,455.84 and a 200 day moving average of $2,226.47. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $9.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.82 by $1.92. The company had revenue of $5.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.55 billion. MercadoLibre had a net margin of 9.21% and a return on equity of 48.46%. MercadoLibre's revenue was up 37.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $6.78 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that MercadoLibre, Inc. will post 43.96 EPS for the current 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.