MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI) Earns Strong-Buy Rating from Raymond James Financial

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial has reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating for MercadoLibre with a target price of $2,750.00, indicating a potential upside of 17.85% from the current trading price.
• MercadoLibre's recent quarterly earnings report showed $10.31 EPS, missing estimates, but it achieved a revenue of $6.79 billion, exceeding expectations by 33.8% year-over-year.
• Institutions own 87.62% of MercadoLibre’s stock, with significant recent investments from various financial firms, reflecting strong institutional interest in the company.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "strong-buy" rating reaffirmed by Raymond James Financial in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $2,750.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James Financial's price target points to a potential upside of 17.85% from the stock's previous close.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports 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 note on Thursday, June 26th. Daiwa Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Friday, August 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $3,000.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,640.00 to $3,000.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Finally, UBS Group set a $3,000.00 price objective on shares of MercadoLibre in a report on Monday, June 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MercadoLibre currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $2,768.61.

MercadoLibre Trading Down 3.1%

NASDAQ MELI traded down $74.49 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $2,333.53. 385,871 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 395,346. MercadoLibre has a 1-year low of $1,646.00 and a 1-year high of $2,645.22. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $2,450.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $2,234.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $118.31 billion, a PE ratio of 57.63, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a current ratio of 1.20.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The company reported $10.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $12.01 by ($1.70). MercadoLibre had a net margin of 8.52% and a return on equity of 46.11%. The company had revenue of $6.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $10.48 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 33.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that MercadoLibre will post 43.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of MercadoLibre

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MELI. Key Financial Inc acquired a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre in the first quarter worth $25,000. GW&K Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in MercadoLibre during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in MercadoLibre during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Covestor Ltd acquired a new position in MercadoLibre during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Close Asset Management Ltd raised its stake in MercadoLibre by 366.7% during the 1st 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 last quarter. 87.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.