D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. Has $237,000 Position in PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT)

D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. decreased its stake in PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT - Free Report) by 89.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,573 shares of the company's stock after selling 22,109 shares during the period. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc.'s holdings in PriceSmart were worth $237,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Boston Partners raised its position in PriceSmart by 4,690.8% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 297,655 shares of the company's stock worth $27,344,000 after acquiring an additional 291,442 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake in PriceSmart by 70,410.0% in the fourth quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 282,040 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,996,000 after buying an additional 281,640 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PriceSmart in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $19,078,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 670.4% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 231,949 shares of the company's stock worth $21,380,000 after acquiring an additional 201,841 shares during the period. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of PriceSmart by 29.2% during the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 621,697 shares of the company's stock worth $57,302,000 after acquiring an additional 140,515 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.46% of the company's stock.

PriceSmart Price Performance

PriceSmart stock traded up $1.69 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $108.45. 338,865 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 191,603. The firm has a market cap of $3.34 billion, a PE ratio of 23.89 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $92.48. PriceSmart, Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.51 and a 12 month high of $108.56.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 9th. The company reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.51 by ($0.06). PriceSmart had a net margin of 2.76% and a return on equity of 12.29%. The firm had revenue of $1.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that PriceSmart, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at PriceSmart

In related news, Director Jeffrey Fisher sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.00, for a total transaction of $208,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,011 shares in the company, valued at $1,145,144. This represents a 15.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Edgar Zurcher sold 390 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.78, for a total value of $40,084.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 9,279 shares of the company's stock, valued at $953,695.62. The trade was a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 9,836 shares of company stock valued at $1,005,273. 17.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of PriceSmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th.

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.