New Century Financial Group LLC Makes New $222,000 Investment in MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI)

New Century Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MercadoLibre, Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $222,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MELI. Planning Capital Management Corp boosted its position in MercadoLibre by 9.1% in the third quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 60 shares of the company’s stock worth $123,000 after purchasing an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. Mount Lucas Management LP boosted its stake in shares of MercadoLibre by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mount Lucas Management LP now owns 143 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,000 after acquiring an additional 5 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC lifted its position in MercadoLibre by 0.9% during the third quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 658 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,350,000 after purchasing an additional 6 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of MercadoLibre by 35.0% during the 3rd quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 27 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 7 shares during the period. Finally, 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of MercadoLibre by 3.7% in the third quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 198 shares of the company’s stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 7 shares during the period. 87.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MercadoLibre Price Performance

NASDAQ:MELI opened at $1,843.45 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.05, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.22. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,845.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,909.29. MercadoLibre, Inc. has a 1 year low of $1,324.99 and a 1 year high of $2,161.73.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MELI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic initiated coverage on MercadoLibre in a research report on Friday, October 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $2,800.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price target on MercadoLibre from $2,480.00 to $2,450.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays dropped their price target on MercadoLibre from $2,500.00 to $2,200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Wedbush reduced their price objective on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,200.00 to $2,100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of MercadoLibre from $2,150.00 to $1,950.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $2,241.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Emiliano Calemzuk sold 50 shares of MercadoLibre stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $472,425.24. The trade was a 17.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

MercadoLibre Company Profile

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.