Bridgewater Advisors Inc. Invests $510,000 in MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI

Bridgewater Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $510,000.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in MercadoLibre by 22.5% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,225,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,481,812,000 after acquiring an additional 408,939 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of MercadoLibre during the fourth quarter valued at $597,045,000. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 184.8% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 311,818 shares of the company’s stock valued at $628,083,000 after acquiring an additional 202,322 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. boosted its stake in shares of MercadoLibre by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 3,481,563 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,012,773,000 after purchasing an additional 164,120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of MercadoLibre by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,583,071 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,188,718,000 after purchasing an additional 137,100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MELI. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,050.00 to $1,750.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,600.00 to $2,450.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $2,100.00 price objective on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Benchmark dropped their price objective on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,780.00 to $2,380.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $2,258.67.

MercadoLibre Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MELI opened at $1,801.44 on Friday. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a twelve month low of $1,495.00 and a twelve month high of $2,548.50. The firm has a market cap of $91.33 billion, a PE ratio of 47.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.16. The business has a fifty day moving average of $1,705.94 and a 200-day moving average of $1,815.81.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $8.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.75 by ($0.52). MercadoLibre had a return on equity of 29.58% and a net margin of 6.04%.The company had revenue of $8.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $9.74 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 49.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that MercadoLibre, Inc. will post 41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Alejandro Nicolas Aguzin purchased 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $1,655.93 per share, with a total value of $993,558.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 5,355 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,867,505.15. This trade represents a 12.62% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

MercadoLibre Company 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.