Cerity Partners LLC Raises Stock Position in PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT)

Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,560 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 644 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in PriceSmart were worth $510,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PSMT. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. increased its holdings in PriceSmart by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,744,726 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,872,000 after acquiring an additional 31,263 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of PriceSmart by 2.8% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,309,265 shares of the company’s stock worth $106,311,000 after purchasing an additional 35,390 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of PriceSmart by 20.4% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,085,897 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,175,000 after purchasing an additional 184,252 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of PriceSmart by 18.7% in the third quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 481,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,163,000 after buying an additional 75,896 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in PriceSmart by 3.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 438,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,247,000 after buying an additional 15,245 shares during the last quarter. 80.46% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PriceSmart Price Performance

PriceSmart stock opened at $91.60 on Friday. PriceSmart, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.87 and a 12-month high of $94.82. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $90.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $86.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.81 billion, a PE ratio of 20.04 and a beta of 0.86.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.01 by ($0.07). PriceSmart had a return on equity of 12.63% and a net margin of 2.83%. The firm had revenue of $1.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.65 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that PriceSmart, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of PriceSmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 30th.

Insider Transactions at PriceSmart

In other news, EVP David R. Price sold 2,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.24, for a total value of $253,660.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 48,844 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,505,370.56. This represents a 5.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Francisco Velasco sold 827 shares of PriceSmart stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.03, for a total transaction of $75,281.81. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 84,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,681,566.55. The trade was a 0.97 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 16,290 shares of company stock worth $1,476,009. 18.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About PriceSmart

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.