PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Saturday.

PriceSmart Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ PSMT opened at $89.74 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.75 billion, a PE ratio of 19.64 and a beta of 0.85. PriceSmart has a twelve month low of $66.95 and a twelve month high of $94.82. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $90.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $86.56.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $1.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.22 billion. PriceSmart had a return on equity of 12.63% and a net margin of 2.83%. PriceSmart’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that PriceSmart will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Paul Kovaleski sold 3,235 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.96, for a total transaction of $291,020.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,986,037.64. The trade was a 6.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Jeffrey Fisher sold 5,478 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.83, for a total value of $497,566.74. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 21,646 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,966,106.18. This represents a 20.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 16,290 shares of company stock worth $1,476,009. Company insiders own 18.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PriceSmart

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PSMT. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of PriceSmart by 20.4% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,085,897 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,175,000 after buying an additional 184,252 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of PriceSmart by 18.7% during the third quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 481,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,163,000 after purchasing an additional 75,896 shares in the last quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PriceSmart by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,818,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $258,721,000 after purchasing an additional 74,201 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of PriceSmart by 5.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,182,739 shares of the company’s stock valued at $108,552,000 after purchasing an additional 65,492 shares during the period. Finally, LSV Asset Management grew its stake in PriceSmart by 28.9% during the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 234,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,047,000 after buying an additional 52,600 shares during the last quarter. 80.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PriceSmart Company Profile

PriceSmart, Inc owns and operates U.S.-style membership shopping warehouse clubs in the United States, Central America, the Caribbean, and Colombia. The company provides basic and private label consumer products under the Member's Selection brand, including groceries, cleaning supplies, health and beauty aids, meat, produce, deli, seafood, and poultry.