Nkcfo LLC Increases Holdings in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI)

Key Points

• Nkcfo LLC increased its stake in MercadoLibre by 1,105% during the first quarter, owning 1,205 shares worth approximately $2.35 million, making it the 27th largest holding in their portfolio.
• Multiple institutional investors, including Ridgewood Investments LLC and LPL Financial LLC, also raised their stakes, demonstrating growing interest in MercadoLibre, which is owned 87.62% by institutional investors.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed ratings for MercadoLibre, with 11 buy ratings and a price target consensus of $2,639.69, while the stock has shown a recent price drop of 1.2% to open at $2,362.56.

Nkcfo LLC raised its stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report) by 1,105.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,205 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,105 shares during the quarter. MercadoLibre accounts for about 1.1% of Nkcfo LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Nkcfo LLC's holdings in MercadoLibre were worth $2,351,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Key Financial Inc purchased a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Covestor Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Close Asset Management Ltd grew its holdings in MercadoLibre by 366.7% during the first quarter. Close Asset Management Ltd now owns 14 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. 87.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MELI has been the subject of several research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price objective on MercadoLibre from $2,900.00 to $2,700.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a "positive" rating and issued a $2,975.00 price target (up from $2,840.00) on shares of MercadoLibre in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "hold" rating and issued a $2,800.00 price target (up from $2,450.00) on shares of MercadoLibre in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Scotiabank began coverage on MercadoLibre in a report on Monday. They issued a "sector outperform" rating and a $3,500.00 price target for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of MercadoLibre in a report on Thursday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $2,690.29.

MercadoLibre Price Performance

NASDAQ MELI traded down $20.99 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $2,360.41. 113,593 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 388,368. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $2,463.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $2,215.13. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a 1 year low of $1,579.78 and a 1 year high of $2,645.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.18. The company has a market cap of $119.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.49.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $9.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.82 by $1.92. The firm had revenue of $5.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.55 billion. MercadoLibre had a return on equity of 48.46% and a net margin of 9.21%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.78 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 37.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that MercadoLibre, Inc. will post 43.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MercadoLibre 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.