Royal Bank of Canada Has $22.88 Million Stock Holdings in PriceSmart, Inc. $PSMT

Royal Bank of Canada cut its position in shares of PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT - Free Report) by 3.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 260,468 shares of the company's stock after selling 10,683 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned 0.85% of PriceSmart worth $22,882,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ridgewood Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of PriceSmart during the 1st quarter worth about $42,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of PriceSmart during the 1st quarter worth about $49,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of PriceSmart during the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 119.7% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 635 shares of the company's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 24.3% during the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 654 shares of the company's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. 80.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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 Friday, September 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Francisco Velasco sold 550 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.31, for a total value of $58,470.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 77,908 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,282,399.48. This represents a 0.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 17.10% of the company's stock.

PriceSmart Stock Performance

PSMT traded up $0.21 on Wednesday, reaching $111.00. The company had a trading volume of 307,829 shares, compared to its average volume of 174,620. PriceSmart, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $81.25 and a fifty-two week high of $114.01. The stock has a market cap of $3.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.42 and a beta of 0.79. The company's fifty day moving average is $108.59 and its 200 day moving average is $100.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 1.28.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 10th. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.16 by ($0.02). PriceSmart had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 12.46%. The company had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.08 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that PriceSmart, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.