MercadoLibre downgraded to Neutral from Buy at BofA

BofA analyst Robert Ford Aguilar downgraded MercadoLibre to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $1,350, down from $1,680. MercadoLibre’s Brazilian merchant base competes with tax-exempt cross-border offers in large part, says the firm, which expects pure cross-border platforms and other derivatives to raise competitive concerns. While BofA anticipates MercadoLibre to pivot towards its own cross-border opportunities given Brazil’s new cross-border tax rules exempt direct-to-consumer e-commerce purchases of up to $50 from a 60% import tariff, but impose a 17% value-added tax, that change could take time, the analyst tells investors.