Why MercadoLibre Can Double Again - Motley Fool

The stock market has performed well this year. For instance, the S&P 500's year-to-date return is more than 25%. However, some stocks have performed even better, one of which is MercadoLibre (NASDAQ:MELI). Shares of the Latin America-focused e-commerce giant are up nearly 100%, vastly outperforming the S&P 500.

Despite this impressive performance, there are several reasons to think the company can go much higher. Let's consider one of those reasons.

MercadoLibre's diversified operations

MercadoLibre is best known for its e-commerce platform, and with good reason: The company operates the largest such platform in South America. During the third quarter, MercadoLibre sold 98 million items, a 17.3% year-over-year increase, while its gross merchandise volume -- the total dollar amount of items sold on its platform -- was $3.6 billion, about 22 percentage points higher than the year-ago period. Furthermore, unique buyers and live listings both increased, by 25.7% and 44.5% respectively.

Image source: Getty Images.

In other words, MercadoLibre is still growing in popularity and continues to attract more buyers and sellers to its platform. However, it would be a grave mistake to think of the company as a one-trick pony. MercadoLibre's venture into the fintech industry -- via its payment platform MercadoPago, which resembles PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) -- could be a major growth driver for the foreseeable future. During the company's third-quarter earnings conference call, CEO Pedro Arnt said:

During the quarter we reached an important historical milestone, as for the first time ever total payment volume away from MercadoLibre's marketplaces surpassed TPV on marketplaces during the full quarter, and did so not only on a consolidated basis, but also in our largest market, Brazil. As of this third quarter, two of our main countries are processing more payment volume away from our e-commerce platforms than on them, as Argentina and Brazil TPV off-marketplaces reached 63% and 52% of total TPV, respectively.

MercadoLibre hopes to achieve this same level of success in markets other than Brazil and Argentina. It is probably in pursuit of that goal (among others) that the company announced a secondary stock offering earlier this year, during which it raised about $1 billion. MercadoLibre also entered into an agreement with PayPal, with the latter company making a $750 million investment in the e-commerce giant. Given PayPal's strong position in the fintech industry, and MercadoLibre's ambitions within that industry, this partnership makes perfect sense: The two companies could combine in ways that could help both grow their respective businesses.

MercadoLibre may just be getting started

MercadoLibre is well-positioned to continue to profit from the growth of the e-commerce industry, and the company's fintech business (also part of a growing industry) is booming as well. Furthermore, the e-commerce giant is keeping its foot on the pedal; it plans to invest the proceeds from its secondary common stock offering into initiatives to solidify its leadership position in its market. For all these reasons, MercadoLibre likely isn't done beating the market, and it's still a solid growth stock worth investing in.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

"can" - Google News
November 30, 2019 at 09:46PM
https://ift.tt/37KKgJg

Why MercadoLibre Can Double Again - Motley Fool
"can" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2NE2i6G
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update

For Boomers and Their Children, Money Conversations Can Be Tough - The Wall Street Journal

By

Julia Carpenter

Julia Carpenter
The Wall Street Journal
• Biography
• @juliaccarpenter
• julia.carpenter@wsj.com

Nov. 30, 2019 8:00 am ET

Photo: Photo Illustration by Emil Lendof/The Wall Street Journal; Photos: iStock

The holiday season is a time for family gatherings, traditions and, predictably, some drama-filled conversations. The latter can involve some of the most difficult subjects for families: money, personal finance and what counts as success.

Jokes and jabs, both from parents and children, highlighting generational differences can shut down these conversations, as parents feel defensive and young people feel misunderstood.

While finances and economic conditions change for every generation as they enter the workplace, talking about those changing circumstances can be tricky. For young adults facing new financial realities, including mounting student debt, rising home prices, and stagnating wages, it can be hard to relate to their parents’ experiences.

“I think where that argument gets the most heated is when you have these Boomers who are successful and have figured it out, and they’re trying to hand people in their late 20s and early 30s the manual, and they’re saying, ‘Here it is, here is what I’m telling you, it’s so easy, just take it,’” said Courtney Escher, a 27-year-old creative coordinator living in Los Angeles, who said she struggles to initiate these conversations with her own family.

“I’ve found that the conversation about money and the conversation about dating and sex—they’re actually similarly awkward,” said Brian Haney, a 49-year-old father and insurance executive living in Richmond, Va. “It’s like, it’s painful and the kids find it really awkward and embarrassing and they don’t want to talk about it.”

Parents often leap into a conversation headfirst because they want to throw solutions at a given problem, said Megan McCoy, director of the financial-planning masters program at Kansas State University. For adult children initiating these conversations, they often don’t want solutions or advice—they just want a listening ear or a chance to share.

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS

What was the best financial advice your parents gave you? Does it still hold true in today’s economy or how would you adjust it? Join the conversation below.

“When your kids get older and you see them in pain, it’s scary for the parent. It’s overwhelming, and it makes you frustrated,” Dr. McCoy said.

For both adult children and their parents looking to have productive conversations about money in this atmosphere, Dr. McCoy recommended being clear about goals. Addressing a goal on the front end can set a positive tone to the conversation. If you don’t want advice, be clear about that from the beginning. If you want to check in on someone’s financial health, address that first.

“I think what closes down the conversation is blame or guilt or shame,” Dr. McCoy said. “So frame a conversation as ‘What do you hope to accomplish?’”

Eric Hart, a 53-year-old landscape contractor living in Eldersburg, Md., said he has seen the benefit of starting these conversations early with his nieces and nephews. One of his young nieces has already started her own neighborhood business selling dog treats, and Mr. Hart talked with her about depositing her earnings in a bank account.

“The main thing is you have to be involved with the kids at a young age,” he said of having these discussions. “When the kid is 15 or 16, that can’t be the first time.”

For children explaining the reasons behind their financial decisions, Dr. McCoy suggests opening up such conversations with the “why” behind a choice, so that parents can understand and empathize. She said she always tells her clients—both parents and children—to consider how they can control their own reactions to these uncomfortable discussions, as well as accepting that someone else’s reaction is outside their control.

Understanding how to have these conversations in a productive way could unlock a greater dialogue about money between the generations and their respective financial struggles. For parents, it gives them an opportunity to gain greater understanding about the lives of their kids.

“Nowadays it’s hard to tell when a person actually becomes an adult,” said Dr. McCoy. “Those old symbols of adulthood may not mean the same. We don’t buy a house or get married at the same age we did 20 or 30 years ago,” she said. “It’s hard for parents to see us as adults if we’re single and living with roommates.”

Vaughn Smith, a 20-year-old college student in Kennesaw, Ga., is already feeling nervous about graduating. Some of the goals he wants to reach—succeeding in business like his father, owning his own home with his long-term girlfriend—feel less and less achievable.

Mr. Smith said he has witnessed firsthand how hard it can be for his peers to broach these topics within their own families, but he is able to openly talk about these goals with his father. When he first went to college, he said his dad sat him down to help him budget for the coming school year, and they have frequent discussions about Mr. Smith’s own personal expenses as well as those related to his father’s business. Every Saturday, when he and his brothers meet up with his father for lunch, he knows that money is a topic that is OK to bring up.

“It’s important you have these conversations, because when you don’t have them, that’s when things are uncertain,” he said. “So at the end of lunch, we usually talk business, and having that repetitive structure to it, I don’t balk at talking with my dad and my brothers.”

Write to Julia Carpenter at Julia.Carpenter@wsj.com

Copyright ©2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

Let's block ads! (Why?)

"can" - Google News
November 30, 2019 at 08:00PM
https://ift.tt/2P3l5Jk

For Boomers and Their Children, Money Conversations Can Be Tough - The Wall Street Journal
"can" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2NE2i6G
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update