Capstone Investment Advisors LLC Takes $578,000 Position in PriceSmart, Inc. $PSMT

Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 2,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $578,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PSMT. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in PriceSmart by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 3,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $454,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in PriceSmart by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 590 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in PriceSmart by 10.9% in the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of PriceSmart by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 745 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 76.0% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 227 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.46% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at PriceSmart

In other news, EVP Francisco Velasco sold 338 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.87, for a total value of $60,120.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 75,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,397,346.27. The trade was a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Beatriz V. Infante sold 800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.98, for a total transaction of $156,784.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,210 shares in the company, valued at $2,196,935.80. The trade was a 6.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,737 shares of company stock worth $1,506,176. Corporate insiders own 17.00% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on PSMT. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $198.00 price objective on shares of PriceSmart in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of PriceSmart in a research note on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, PriceSmart presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $198.00.

PriceSmart Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PSMT opened at $169.34 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.28. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $185.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $168.05. The stock has a market cap of $5.23 billion, a PE ratio of 32.50 and a beta of 0.76. PriceSmart, Inc. has a one year low of $106.87 and a one year high of $199.84.

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

PriceSmart Company Profile

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.