MercadoLibre Shares Soared: What You Need to Know

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of the MercadoLibre (NAS: MELI) are soaring upwards of 35% today after the company reported third-quarter earnings last night.

So what: Third-quarter revenue added up to $81.6 million, representing a 45.9% gain over last year, while earnings per share was $0.60. Both results destroyed the market's expectations of $78.7 million in revenue and $0.43 in earnings per share.

Now what: The "eBay (NAS: EBAY) of Latin America," which counts the eBay of North America as an investor, saw healthy growth among all geographic segments, particularly Argentina and Venezuela who saw 55% and 57% growth, respectively. Total confirmed registered users jumped 23% to 62 million, while items sold increased 38.1%. MercadoLibre continues to benefit from the Internet adoption in Latin America and the resulting growth of e-commerce.

Interested in more info on MercadoLibre? Add it to your watchlist byclicking here.

At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributor Evan Niu holds no position in any company mentioned. Click here to see his holdings and a short bio. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of eBay and Mercadolibre. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Copyright © 1995 - 2011 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.