PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) Lowered to "Hold" Rating by StockNews.com

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report issued on Friday.

PriceSmart Stock Performance

PSMT traded down $4.20 on Friday, hitting $89.25. 485,408 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 263,651. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $91.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $88.65. PriceSmart has a twelve month low of $74.74 and a twelve month high of $99.23. The firm has a market cap of $2.74 billion, a PE ratio of 19.53 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 8th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.43 by ($0.22). The company had revenue of $1.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.24 billion. PriceSmart had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 12.63%. The company's revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.24 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that PriceSmart will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Paul Kovaleski sold 3,235 shares of PriceSmart stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.96, for a total value of $291,020.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,309 shares in the company, valued at $3,986,037.64. This trade represents a 6.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Michael Mccleary sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.62, for a total transaction of $358,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 62,141 shares in the company, valued at $5,569,076.42. This represents a 6.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,463 shares of company stock worth $1,400,727 in the last quarter. 17.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of PriceSmart

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. TD Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in PriceSmart by 6.3% in the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 27,100 shares of the company's stock worth $2,201,000 after purchasing an additional 1,600 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in PriceSmart by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 7,293 shares of the company's stock valued at $592,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the period. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp grew its position in shares of PriceSmart by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 22,262 shares of the company's stock worth $1,808,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC boosted its position in shares of PriceSmart by 28.3% during the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 2,260 shares of the company's stock worth $184,000 after acquiring an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of PriceSmart by 20.4% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,085,897 shares of the company's stock worth $88,175,000 after acquiring an additional 184,252 shares in the last quarter. 80.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.

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