MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI) Cut to “Strong Sell” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research lowered shares of MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on MELI. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of MercadoLibre from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on MercadoLibre from $2,600.00 to $2,650.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Barclays raised their price target on MercadoLibre from $2,800.00 to $2,900.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $2,842.94.

MercadoLibre Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:MELI opened at $1,973.70 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $100.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.16, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.42. MercadoLibre has a 12 month low of $1,723.90 and a 12 month high of $2,645.22. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $2,076.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $2,262.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Emiliano Calemzuk sold 45 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2,027.37, for a total value of $91,231.65. Following the sale, the director directly owned 257 shares in the company, valued at approximately $521,034.09. This trade represents a 14.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Stelleo Tolda sold 246 shares of MercadoLibre stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2,047.88, for a total transaction of $503,778.48. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 1,136 shares of company stock worth $2,308,788 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MercadoLibre

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Jackson Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in MercadoLibre during the second quarter valued at about $499,000. Highview Capital Management LLC DE purchased a new position in MercadoLibre during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $559,000. Ninety One North America Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 21.5% during the second quarter. Ninety One North America Inc. now owns 6,094 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,927,000 after buying an additional 1,080 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 15,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,900,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,235,240 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,228,460,000 after acquiring an additional 81,124 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.62% of the company’s stock.

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.