Short Interest in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) Decreases By 18.8%

MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) was the target of a large drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 663,100 shares, a drop of 18.8% from the November 30th total of 816,200 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 430,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.5 days. Currently, 1.4% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling at MercadoLibre

In other news, Director Emiliano Calemzuk sold 50 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,984.98, for a total transaction of $99,249.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $472,425.24. This trade represents a 17.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MercadoLibre

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MELI. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in MercadoLibre by 20.9% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 59,430 shares of the company’s stock valued at $121,948,000 after acquiring an additional 10,272 shares in the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC grew its holdings in shares of MercadoLibre by 10.2% in the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 107,525 shares of the company’s stock valued at $220,637,000 after purchasing an additional 9,910 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in MercadoLibre by 59.7% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 15,829 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,480,000 after buying an additional 5,918 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in MercadoLibre during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $977,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in MercadoLibre by 35.7% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 475 shares of the company’s stock valued at $975,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. 87.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MercadoLibre Trading Down 1.2 %

MELI traded down $21.36 on Tuesday, hitting $1,700.44. The company had a trading volume of 173,053 shares, compared to its average volume of 372,563. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market cap of $86.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.00, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.57. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $1,916.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $1,891.86. MercadoLibre has a 1 year low of $1,324.99 and a 1 year high of $2,161.73.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,480.00 to $2,450.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Raymond James started coverage on MercadoLibre in a research report on Friday, September 27th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $2,350.00 target price on the stock. BTIG Research dropped their price target on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,250.00 to $2,200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,250.00 to $2,500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their target price on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,530.00 to $2,300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $2,267.67.

About MercadoLibre

MercadoLibre, Inc operates online commerce platforms in the United States. It operates Mercado Libre Marketplace, an automated online commerce platform that enables businesses, merchants, and individuals to list merchandise and conduct sales and purchases digitally; and Mercado Pago FinTech platform, a financial technology solution platform, which facilitates transactions on and off its marketplaces by providing a mechanism that allows its users to send and receive payments online, as well as allows users to transfer money through their websites or on the apps.