ThornTree Capital Partners LP Boosts Stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI

Key Points

• ThornTree Capital Partners LP increased its stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. by 183.2%, acquiring an additional 6,884 shares, bringing their total ownership to 10,642 shares worth approximately $20.76 million.
• MercadoLibre reported $10.31 earnings per share for the last quarter, missing expectations by $1.70, while its revenue of $6.79 billion exceeded analyst forecasts.
• Analyst ratings for MercadoLibre are predominantly positive, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $2,817.22 among several firms.

ThornTree Capital Partners LP grew its stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI - Free Report) by 183.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,642 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 6,884 shares during the quarter. MercadoLibre accounts for approximately 4.6% of ThornTree Capital Partners LP's portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. ThornTree Capital Partners LP's holdings in MercadoLibre were worth $20,761,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MELI. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG purchased a new stake in MercadoLibre during the fourth quarter worth approximately $561,000. Bison Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in MercadoLibre during the fourth quarter worth approximately $206,000. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in MercadoLibre by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 5,476 shares of the company's stock worth $9,311,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co lifted its stake in MercadoLibre by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 583 shares of the company's stock worth $992,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ethic Inc. lifted its stake in MercadoLibre by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 916 shares of the company's stock worth $1,558,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.62% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on MELI. Wedbush set a $2,700.00 target price on MercadoLibre and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Citigroup decreased their target price on MercadoLibre from $2,900.00 to $2,850.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Scotiabank started coverage on MercadoLibre in a research report on Monday, July 28th. They set a "sector outperform" rating and a $3,500.00 price target on the stock. Susquehanna reaffirmed a "positive" rating and set a $2,975.00 price target (up previously from $2,840.00) on shares of MercadoLibre in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, UBS Group set a $3,000.00 price target on MercadoLibre in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $2,817.22.

MercadoLibre Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MELI traded down $10.79 during trading on Thursday, reaching $2,338.20. The company had a trading volume of 330,897 shares, compared to its average volume of 389,439. The firm has a market capitalization of $118.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 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 stock's fifty day moving average price is $2,391.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $2,304.11. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $1,646.00 and a fifty-two week high of $2,645.22.

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

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.