Insider Selling: PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) Director Sells $690,632.62 in Stock

PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) Director Sherry Bahrambeygui sold 3,499 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.38, for a total transaction of $690,632.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 32,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,345,767. This represents a 9.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

PriceSmart Stock Performance

Shares of PSMT opened at $178.13 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a PE ratio of 34.19 and a beta of 0.76. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $186.03 and a 200-day moving average of $164.80. PriceSmart, Inc. has a one year low of $105.46 and a one year high of $199.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 0.53.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 8th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.04). PriceSmart had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 12.16%. The firm had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.14 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Weiss Ratings downgraded PriceSmart from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, PriceSmart has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Institutional Trading of PriceSmart

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Progeny 3 Inc. bought a new position in shares of PriceSmart during the third quarter worth approximately $27,825,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in PriceSmart in the 2nd quarter valued at $40,930,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in PriceSmart by 54.7% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 551,566 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,936,000 after buying an additional 194,980 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in PriceSmart by 821.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 217,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,619,000 after buying an additional 193,446 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its position in PriceSmart by 5,150.6% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 114,936 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,929,000 after buying an additional 112,747 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.46% of the company’s stock.

About PriceSmart

PriceSmart, Inc (NASDAQ: PSMT) is a U.S.-based retailer specializing in membership warehouse clubs. Founded in 1993, the company operates under a business model that offers bulk quantities of goods at discounted prices to individuals and businesses that purchase annual memberships. PriceSmart’s value proposition centers on low-cost operations, high-volume purchasing, and a no-frills shopping environment designed to pass savings directly to its members.

The company’s product assortment covers a broad range of merchandise categories, including groceries and fresh produce, household essentials, electronics, appliances, office supplies, furniture, and health and beauty items.