SG Americas Securities LLC Reduces Position in PriceSmart, Inc. $PSMT

SG Americas Securities LLC decreased its holdings in shares of PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) by 50.5% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 7,374 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,534 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in PriceSmart were worth $1,110,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in PriceSmart by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,258,234 shares of the company’s stock worth $152,489,000 after purchasing an additional 10,537 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in PriceSmart by 2.4% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,045,998 shares of the company’s stock valued at $109,872,000 after purchasing an additional 24,512 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in PriceSmart by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 763,261 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,640,000 after purchasing an additional 7,095 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in PriceSmart by 13.3% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 624,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,742,000 after buying an additional 73,419 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased its position in PriceSmart by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 495,799 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,820,000 after buying an additional 8,428 shares in the last quarter. 80.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PriceSmart Stock Performance

PSMT opened at $197.90 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.03 and a beta of 0.76. PriceSmart, Inc. has a 1-year low of $101.30 and a 1-year high of $199.41. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $172.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $154.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 0.52.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 8th. The company reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.05. PriceSmart had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 12.23%. The firm had revenue of $1.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.45 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PriceSmart news, Director Gordon H. Hanson sold 635 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $157.60, for a total value of $100,076.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 8,149 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,284,282.40. This represents a 7.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Francisco Velasco sold 338 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.56, for a total value of $53,593.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 75,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,996,491.04. This represents a 0.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 3,232 shares of company stock valued at $504,198. Company insiders own 17.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.