Swiss National Bank Raises Stake in PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT)

Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in shares of PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 51,200 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 300 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in PriceSmart were worth $4,719,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PSMT. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. raised its stake in PriceSmart by 2.7% during the third quarter. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. now owns 2,818,927 shares of the company’s stock worth $258,721,000 after purchasing an additional 74,201 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of PriceSmart by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,182,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $108,552,000 after buying an additional 65,492 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of PriceSmart by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 684,870 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,868,000 after buying an additional 25,216 shares during the period. Copeland Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in PriceSmart by 29.2% in the fourth quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 621,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,302,000 after acquiring an additional 140,515 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in PriceSmart by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 453,876 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,834,000 after acquiring an additional 15,359 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.46% of the company’s stock.

PriceSmart Trading Up 2.6 %

Shares of PSMT stock opened at $85.91 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $89.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $90.19. The firm has a market cap of $2.63 billion, a PE ratio of 18.92 and a beta of 0.84. PriceSmart, Inc. has a 1-year low of $77.51 and a 1-year high of $99.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 8th. The company reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by ($0.22). PriceSmart had a return on equity of 12.29% and a net margin of 2.76%. The company had revenue of $1.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.24 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that PriceSmart, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

PriceSmart Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. PriceSmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded PriceSmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PriceSmart news, Director Jeffrey Fisher sold 1,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $161,500.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 16,911 shares in the company, valued at $1,606,545. This represents a 9.13 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Gordon H. Hanson sold 1,107 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.22, for a total transaction of $96,552.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $598,503.64. This trade represents a 13.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 21,162 shares of company stock valued at $1,930,402. Corporate insiders own 17.10% of the company’s stock.

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.