PriceSmart, Inc. $PSMT Shares Sold by London Co. of Virginia

London Co. of Virginia reduced its stake in PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 198,353 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,893 shares during the quarter. London Co. of Virginia owned about 0.64% of PriceSmart worth $24,039,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Pertento Partners LLP acquired a new position in PriceSmart in the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,224,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of PriceSmart by 54.7% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 551,566 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,936,000 after buying an additional 194,980 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp acquired a new position in shares of PriceSmart in the third quarter valued at approximately $21,915,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of PriceSmart by 37.0% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 651,499 shares of the company’s stock valued at $78,955,000 after buying an additional 175,806 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 7.7% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,401,706 shares of the company’s stock valued at $147,236,000 after buying an additional 100,785 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.46% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PSMT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of PriceSmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded PriceSmart from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Strong Buy”.

PriceSmart Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:PSMT opened at $151.17 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The firm has a market cap of $4.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.85 and a beta of 0.73. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $146.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $129.64. PriceSmart, Inc. has a 12-month low of $81.25 and a 12-month high of $158.01.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 7th. The company reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.36 billion. PriceSmart had a net margin of 2.79% and a return on equity of 12.20%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.21 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that PriceSmart, Inc. will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

PriceSmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a yield of 89.0%. PriceSmart’s dividend payout ratio is 28.57%.

Insider Activity at PriceSmart

In other PriceSmart news, COO John D. Hildebrandt sold 7,421 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.88, for a total transaction of $1,015,786.48. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 108,194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,809,594.72. This trade represents a 6.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Paul Kovaleski sold 4,255 shares of PriceSmart stock in a transaction on Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.86, for a total transaction of $582,339.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 38,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,317,558.44. This trade represents a 9.87% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 16,671 shares of company stock worth $2,283,051. 17.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

PriceSmart 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.