Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in PriceSmart, Inc. $PSMT

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ:PSMT) by 22.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,339 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,275 shares during the quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in PriceSmart were worth $1,296,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of PSMT. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in PriceSmart by 560.0% in 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. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in PriceSmart in the first quarter worth about $42,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in PriceSmart in the first quarter worth about $49,000. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new position in PriceSmart in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $53,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in PriceSmart by 24.3% in the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 654 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.46% of the company’s stock.

PriceSmart Stock Up 0.6%

PSMT opened at $123.04 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.96 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $115.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $107.95. PriceSmart, Inc. has a twelve month low of $81.25 and a twelve month high of $125.48.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on PSMT shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of PriceSmart from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 26th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of PriceSmart in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael Mccleary sold 9,754 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.62, for a total value of $1,078,987.48. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 47,082 shares in the company, valued at $5,208,210.84. This represents a 17.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Francisco Velasco sold 550 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $122.82, for a total value of $67,551.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 80,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,892,905.36. This trade represents a 0.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 17.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.