EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. Lowers Stock Position in PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT)

EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. cut its stake in PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT - Free Report) by 48.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,457,697 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,361,230 shares during the quarter. PriceSmart makes up approximately 1.1% of EdgePoint Investment Group Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. owned approximately 4.75% of PriceSmart worth $134,356,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of PSMT. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of PriceSmart by 227.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 46,710 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,287,000 after purchasing an additional 32,438 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in PriceSmart by 8.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 42,955 shares of the company's stock worth $3,942,000 after acquiring an additional 3,406 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in PriceSmart by 47.0% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 18,195 shares of the company's stock worth $1,677,000 after acquiring an additional 5,818 shares during the period. West Oak Capital LLC increased its position in PriceSmart by 48,368.6% during the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 16,964 shares of the company's stock worth $1,564,000 after acquiring an additional 16,929 shares during the period. Finally, Burney Co. bought a new position in PriceSmart during the fourth quarter worth about $5,030,000. 80.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of PriceSmart from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Francisco Velasco sold 550 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.74, for a total transaction of $54,857.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 78,458 shares in the company, valued at $7,825,400.92. This represents a 0.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Paul Kovaleski sold 896 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.85, for a total transaction of $90,361.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,039 shares in the company, valued at $4,340,483.15. The trade was a 2.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,646 shares of company stock worth $164,223 in the last three months. 17.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

PriceSmart Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PSMT traded down $0.56 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $103.89. 234,934 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 188,831. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 1.26. PriceSmart, Inc. has a one year low of $77.51 and a one year high of $108.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.20 billion, a PE ratio of 22.88 and a beta of 0.75. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $91.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $91.06.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. PriceSmart's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that PriceSmart, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PriceSmart Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.63 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. PriceSmart's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.92%.

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.