James Investment Research Inc. Has $592,000 Stock Position in PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT)

James Investment Research Inc. raised its stake in shares of PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) by 123.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,422 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,544 shares during the quarter. James Investment Research Inc.’s holdings in PriceSmart were worth $592,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in PriceSmart by 3.2% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 7,720 shares of the company’s stock valued at $709,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 22.8% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $117,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 8.4% in the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $321,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 16,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,524,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP raised its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 1.3% in the third quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 24,094 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,211,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. 80.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PriceSmart Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PSMT opened at $91.14 on Monday. PriceSmart, Inc. has a 1 year low of $77.51 and a 1 year high of $99.23. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $92.22 and a 200-day moving average of $89.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.07 and a beta of 0.85.

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 the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.24 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.24 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that PriceSmart, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PriceSmart Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $0.63 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. PriceSmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Francisco Velasco sold 555 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.42, for a total value of $50,183.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 79,008 shares in the company, valued at $7,143,903.36. The trade was a 0.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Michael Mccleary sold 4,000 shares of PriceSmart stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.67, for a total transaction of $358,680.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 58,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,213,503.47. This represents a 6.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 21,162 shares of company stock worth $1,930,402 in the last quarter. Insiders own 17.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of PriceSmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th.

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.