Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG Increases Stake in MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI

Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG grew its position in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) by 17.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,978 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 447 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG’s holdings in MercadoLibre were worth $6,959,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Optimize Financial Inc boosted its holdings in MercadoLibre by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Optimize Financial Inc now owns 238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $464,000 after purchasing an additional 4 shares in the last quarter. Range Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 188 shares of the company’s stock valued at $491,000 after buying an additional 5 shares during the period. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of MercadoLibre by 26.3% in the second quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 24 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 5 shares in the last quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of MercadoLibre by 4.2% in the second quarter. Quadcap Wealth Management LLC now owns 124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $324,000 after buying an additional 5 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFW Advisors LLC grew its holdings in MercadoLibre by 4.8% during the third quarter. PFW Advisors LLC now owns 110 shares of the company’s stock worth $257,000 after acquiring an additional 5 shares during the period. 87.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at MercadoLibre

In related news, Director Henrique Vasoncelos Dubugras sold 845 shares of MercadoLibre stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2,028.14, for a total transaction of $1,713,778.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Emiliano Calemzuk sold 45 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The shares were 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 owned 257 shares in the company, valued at approximately $521,034.09. This trade represents a 14.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,136 shares of company stock valued at $2,308,788. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MELI. Dbs Bank raised MercadoLibre from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 2nd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,850.00 to $2,700.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of MercadoLibre from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,975.00 to $2,900.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,850.00 to $2,950.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $2,842.94.

MercadoLibre Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MELI opened at $2,014.26 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a market capitalization of $102.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.42. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $2,080.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $2,266.65. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a twelve month low of $1,698.53 and a twelve month high of $2,645.22.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $8.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.88 by ($1.56). MercadoLibre had a net margin of 7.93% and a return on equity of 39.03%. The business had revenue of $7.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $7.83 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that MercadoLibre, Inc. will post 43.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MercadoLibre Profile

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.