Swiss National Bank Sells 6,700 Shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI

Swiss National Bank lessened its stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) by 4.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 131,500 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,700 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in MercadoLibre were worth $307,308,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in MercadoLibre in the second quarter worth $29,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new position in MercadoLibre in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its position in MercadoLibre by 100.0% during the third quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 16 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 8 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its stake in MercadoLibre by 35.7% during the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 19 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in MercadoLibre during the third quarter worth about $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MELI. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price objective on MercadoLibre from $2,750.00 to $2,400.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Itau BBA Securities restated an “outperform” rating on shares of MercadoLibre in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Barclays cut their target price on MercadoLibre from $2,900.00 to $2,600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of MercadoLibre from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,800.00 to $2,650.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $2,785.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at MercadoLibre

In related news, Director Henrique Vasoncelos Dubugras sold 845 shares of MercadoLibre stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,028.14, for a total value of $1,713,778.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Emiliano Calemzuk sold 45 shares of MercadoLibre stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2,027.37, for a total transaction of $91,231.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 257 shares in the company, valued at approximately $521,034.09. The trade was a 14.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,136 shares of company stock worth $2,308,788. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

MercadoLibre Trading Up 0.4%

NASDAQ MELI opened at $1,787.86 on Monday. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a 1-year low of $1,654.24 and a 1-year high of $2,645.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $2,024.42 and a 200-day moving average of $2,139.12. The firm has a market cap of $90.64 billion, a PE ratio of 45.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.48.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $11.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $11.66 by ($0.63). The company had revenue of $8.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.45 billion. MercadoLibre had a net margin of 6.91% and a return on equity of 33.73%. The company’s revenue was up 44.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $12.61 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 an integrated e-commerce and fintech ecosystem serving consumers and businesses across Latin America. The company provides an online marketplace that connects buyers and sellers for a wide range of goods and services, supported by tools for merchants, advertising, and classifieds. Over time MercadoLibre has expanded beyond its marketplace roots into complementary areas that support digital commerce end to end.

Key offerings include its marketplace platform and a suite of logistics and payment services.