Lazard Asset Management LLC Sells 1,897 Shares of PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT)

Lazard Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) by 9.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,151 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,897 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned about 0.06% of PriceSmart worth $1,672,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of PriceSmart by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,305,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $120,345,000 after buying an additional 5,947 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,230,696 shares of the company’s stock valued at $113,434,000 after purchasing an additional 48,108 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,204,566 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,025,000 after purchasing an additional 21,827 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 692,864 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,874,000 after purchasing an additional 7,994 shares during the period. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of PriceSmart by 29.2% in the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 621,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,302,000 after purchasing an additional 140,515 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.46% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Paul Kovaleski sold 896 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.85, for a total transaction of $90,361.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,340,483.15. This represents a 2.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jeffrey Fisher sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.21, for a total value of $306,630.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,329,854.31. This trade represents a 18.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,836 shares of company stock valued at $1,005,273 in the last ninety days. 17.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

PriceSmart Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:PSMT opened at $104.71 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.06 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The business’s 50-day moving average is $92.73 and its 200-day moving average is $91.46. PriceSmart, Inc. has a 1 year low of $77.51 and a 1 year high of $108.01.

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 9th. The company reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $1.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. PriceSmart had a net margin of 2.76% and a return on equity of 12.29%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.31 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that PriceSmart, Inc. will post 5.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com raised PriceSmart from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th.

PriceSmart Profile

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.