AMAZON COM INC vs MercadoLibre, Inc.. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
MercadoLibre converts 14% of its price into free cash, while Amazon's free-cash yield sits just under zero, and that contrast is the axis the pair turns on. The Latin American name earns 26% on equity to Amazon's 15%, but it does so carrying a 1.36 debt-to-equity against Amazon's 0.28, so some of that return rides on a more leveraged base. On net margin Amazon is the wider of the two, keeping 9 cents of each sales dollar to MercadoLibre's 6, with MELI's thinner 7% operating margin reflecting a credit-and-logistics buildout still finding scale. The market pays slightly up for MELI on earnings, near 43 times to Amazon's 41, an unusually small premium for the faster cash generator. Strip out the leverage and the question is whether MercadoLibre's grip on its region justifies matching the multiple of a company many times its size.
Comparison updated 2026-06-15.
| Metric | AMZN | MELI |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $245.35 | $1852.49 |
| Market cap | $2.67T | $93.9B |
| Sector | Retail | Internet Retail |
| Stage | Mature | Growth |
| P/E | 29.4 | 48.9 |
| P/B | 6.04 | 12.90 |
| P/S | 3.59 | 2.95 |
| EV/EBITDA | 17.3 | 30.4 |
| Revenue growth | +14.2% | +41.7% |
| Gross margin | — | 43.7% |
| Operating margin | 13.1% | 6.9% |
| Net margin | 8.9% | 6.0% |
| Return on equity | 15.0% | 26.4% |
| Return on assets | 7.2% | 4.1% |
| Return on invested capital | 11.9% | 12.8% |
| FCF yield | -0.1% | 12.6% |
| Dividend yield | — | 0.0% |
| Debt / equity | 0.28 | 1.36 |
| Current ratio | 1.18 | 1.16 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 7.38 | 2.46 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 5 / 9 | 6 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.