PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) Lowered to "Hold" Rating by Wall Street Zen

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

PriceSmart Trading Up 0.1%

PSMT traded up $0.10 during trading on Friday, hitting $106.35. The company's stock had a trading volume of 509,424 shares, compared to its average volume of 198,392. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.72 and a beta of 0.81. PriceSmart has a twelve month low of $77.65 and a twelve month high of $109.84. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $104.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $94.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 9th. The company reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.51 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.34 billion. PriceSmart had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 12.40%. The business's revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. Analysts anticipate that PriceSmart will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jeffrey Fisher sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.21, for a total value of $306,630.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 13,011 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,329,854.31. The trade was a 18.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Edgar Zurcher sold 390 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now directly owns 9,279 shares of the company's stock, valued at $953,695.62. This trade represents a 4.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,836 shares of company stock worth $1,005,273. Company insiders own 17.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of PriceSmart

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PSMT. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in PriceSmart during the first quarter worth $36,685,000. Boston Partners increased its position in shares of 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 holdings in shares of PriceSmart by 70,410.0% in the 4th quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 282,040 shares of the company's stock worth $25,996,000 after acquiring an additional 281,640 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC bought a new position in PriceSmart in the 4th quarter valued at about $19,078,000. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in PriceSmart by 670.4% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 231,949 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,380,000 after acquiring an additional 201,841 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.46% of the company's stock.

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.

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