Hsbc Holdings PLC Sells 2,292 Shares of PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT)

Hsbc Holdings PLC decreased its holdings in shares of PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) by 20.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,802 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,292 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in PriceSmart were worth $665,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in PriceSmart by 235.9% during the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 4,847 shares of the company’s stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 3,404 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in PriceSmart by 93.1% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 616 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in PriceSmart by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 94,848 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,060,000 after acquiring an additional 626 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its position in PriceSmart by 18.1% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 5,371 shares of the company’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 824 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RWC Asset Management LLP bought a new position in shares of PriceSmart during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,778,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.46% of the company’s stock.

PriceSmart Stock Performance

Shares of PSMT traded up $0.44 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $82.46. The stock had a trading volume of 94,268 shares, compared to its average volume of 206,288. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $76.33. The firm has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a PE ratio of 20.72 and a beta of 0.92. PriceSmart, Inc. has a one year low of $61.82 and a one year high of $86.90.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 10th. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by $0.07. PriceSmart had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 2.62%. The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that PriceSmart, Inc. will post 4.64 EPS for the current year.

PriceSmart Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a None dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th were paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 18th. PriceSmart’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Edgar Zurcher sold 1,075 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.08, for a total value of $85,011.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $697,643.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Gordon H. Hanson sold 937 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.86, for a total transaction of $74,828.82. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $636,404.34. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Edgar Zurcher sold 1,075 shares of PriceSmart stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.08, for a total transaction of $85,011.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 8,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $697,643.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 17,458 shares of company stock valued at $1,429,315. Company insiders own 18.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PSMT. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of PriceSmart from $82.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. TheStreet upgraded PriceSmart from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered PriceSmart from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 13th.

About PriceSmart

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.