William Blair Investment Management LLC Buys New Position in PriceSmart, Inc. $PSMT

William Blair Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 272,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,157,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PriceSmart by 560.0% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 297 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of PriceSmart by 76.0% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 227 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co acquired a new stake in shares of PriceSmart in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in shares of PriceSmart in the second quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its position in PriceSmart by 57.2% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 492 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. 80.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on PSMT. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $198.00 target price on shares of PriceSmart in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of PriceSmart from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $198.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PriceSmart news, EVP Francisco Velasco sold 338 shares of PriceSmart stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.87, for a total transaction of $60,120.06. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 75,321 shares in the company, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Sherry S. Bahrambeygui sold 3,499 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.38, for a total transaction of $690,632.62. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 32,150 shares in the company, valued at $6,345,767. This trade represents a 9.82% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 7,737 shares of company stock worth $1,506,176 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 17.00% of the company’s stock.

PriceSmart Price Performance

Shares of PSMT stock opened at $172.87 on Friday. PriceSmart, Inc. has a 12 month low of $105.46 and a 12 month high of $199.84. The company has a market capitalization of $5.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.18 and a beta of 0.76. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $186.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $167.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08.

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

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.