PriceSmart Inc (PSMT)

Gross profit margin

		Feb 29, 2024	Nov 30, 2023	Aug 31, 2023	May 31, 2023	Feb 28, 2023	Nov 30, 2022	Aug 31, 2022	May 31, 2022	Feb 28, 2022	Nov 30, 2021	Aug 31, 2021	May 31, 2021	Feb 28, 2021	Nov 30, 2020	Aug 31, 2020	May 31, 2020	Feb 29, 2020	Nov 30, 2019	Aug 31, 2019	May 31, 2019
Gross profit (ttm)	US$ in thousands	4,053,264	3,917,918	3,826,816	3,752,257	3,704,412	3,625,481	3,553,134	3,446,680	3,315,337	3,220,361	3,132,830	2,491,527	2,415,901	2,395,140	2,336,745	2,334,600	2,323,302	2,281,962	2,253,358	2,242,889
Revenue (ttm)	US$ in thousands	4,645,640	4,498,230	4,392,180	4,301,670	4,240,670	4,145,550	4,066,096	3,954,332	3,818,786	3,717,795	3,619,871	3,520,846	3,425,513	3,394,679	3,329,188	3,319,907	3,308,532	3,256,222	3,223,918	3,200,484
Gross profit margin		87.25%	87.10%	87.13%	87.23%	87.35%	87.45%	87.38%	87.16%	86.82%	86.62%	86.55%	70.77%	70.53%	70.56%	70.19%	70.32%	70.22%	70.08%	69.90%	70.08%

February 29, 2024 calculation

Gross profit margin = Gross profit (ttm) ÷ Revenue (ttm)
= $4,053,264K ÷ $4,645,640K
= 87.25%

The gross profit margin of PriceSmart Inc has shown a generally consistent and strong performance over the past several quarters, ranging from 87.10% to 87.45%. This indicates that the company is effectively controlling its production costs and maximizing the markup on its goods sold.

There was a noticeable decline in the gross profit margin in the most recent quarters, dropping to 70.77% in February 2021 and gradually climbing back up to 87.25% in February 2024. This fluctuation may reflect changes in pricing strategies, input costs, or sales mix during this period.

Overall, PriceSmart Inc's ability to maintain a high gross profit margin suggests efficiency in its operations and effective management of production and inventory costs. However, the recent decline followed by a recovery indicates some volatility in the company's profit margins that may warrant further investigation into the factors influencing these changes.