Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. Purchases 798 Shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. $MELI

Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) by 9.3% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 9,368 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 798 shares during the period. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in MercadoLibre were worth $16,197,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brown Advisory Inc. grew its stake in shares of MercadoLibre by 2,494.9% during the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 15,362 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,943,000 after buying an additional 14,770 shares during the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC raised its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 238.3% in the fourth quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 2,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,089,000 after buying an additional 1,430 shares during the period. TIAA Trust National Association lifted its stake in shares of MercadoLibre by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 11,011 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,179,000 after acquiring an additional 1,083 shares during the last quarter. Deepwater Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of MercadoLibre by 38.6% during the 4th quarter. Deepwater Asset Management LLC now owns 7,765 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,641,000 after acquiring an additional 2,164 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas boosted its holdings in MercadoLibre by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. Employees Retirement System of Texas now owns 40,184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,941,000 after acquiring an additional 6,200 shares during the period. 87.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MELI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $2,100.00 price objective on MercadoLibre in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on MercadoLibre from $2,100.00 to $1,900.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $2,150.00 target price on shares of MercadoLibre in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of MercadoLibre from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $2,800.00 to $2,600.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, 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 note on Monday, May 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $2,258.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at MercadoLibre

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

MercadoLibre Price Performance

Shares of MELI stock opened at $1,801.44 on Friday. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a 1-year low of $1,495.00 and a 1-year high of $2,548.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $1,705.94 and its 200 day moving average is $1,815.81. The company has a market cap of $91.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.54, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI) last posted its 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). The company had revenue of $8.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.29 billion. MercadoLibre had a net margin of 6.04% and a return on equity of 29.58%. MercadoLibre’s revenue for the quarter was up 49.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $9.74 EPS. Research analysts predict that MercadoLibre, Inc. will post 41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.