PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.07 EPS

PriceSmart (NASDAQ:PSMT) announced its earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.07, Briefing.com reports. PriceSmart had a net margin of 2.62% and a return on equity of 11.85%. The firm had revenue of $1.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.25 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis.

PriceSmart Stock Performance

PriceSmart stock opened at $80.07 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. The stock has a market cap of $2.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.12 and a beta of 0.92. PriceSmart has a 52 week low of $61.82 and a 52 week high of $86.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $81.54 and a 200-day moving average of $75.59.

PriceSmart Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. PriceSmart’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on PSMT shares. StockNews.com raised shares of PriceSmart from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. TheStreet upgraded PriceSmart from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PriceSmart

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PSMT. Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new stake in PriceSmart in the second quarter worth $213,000. CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in PriceSmart in the first quarter worth $211,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC acquired a new stake in PriceSmart in the first quarter worth $203,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in PriceSmart in the second quarter worth $198,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in PriceSmart by 58.2% in the first quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,608 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,000 after buying an additional 959 shares during the period. 80.46% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.