PRICESMART ANNOUNCES FISCAL 2022 4TH QUARTER OPERATING RESULTS.

SAN DIEGO: PriceSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ: PSMT), operator of 50 warehouse clubs in 12 countries and one U.S. territory, today announced results for the fiscal fourth quarter of 2022, which ended on August 31, 2022.

Comments from Sherry S. Bahrambeygui, Chief Executive Officer:

"Our team delivered impressive results for the fourth quarter, with net merchandise sales finishing at $989.9 million and total revenues exceeding $1.0 billion for the quarter and $4.0 billion for the year. Net merchandise sales grew by 13.6%, after a negative 2.9% currency impact, and comparable net merchandise sales increased by 9.2%, after a negative 2.7% currency impact.

"Our total membership base grew to a new record of 1.76 million accounts, representing growth of 5.5% versus last year. Our 12-month membership renewal rate was 88.9%, and our membership income for the fourth quarter was a record $15.6 million, an increase of 6.7% over the same period last year. We believe that these strong results and solid renewal rates demonstrate that our team is executing well on our unique club-focused business model and that our Members are pleased with the value they are receiving.

"Our team adeptly handled the excess inventory challenges head-on and efficiently moved through overstocks, allowing us to begin restoring a more normalized inventory balance and margin structure.

"We ended the year with a strong balance sheet, which included cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash of $251.4 million and debt of only $137.3 million.

"As to fiscal year 2023, we are off to a respectable start with September total net merchandise sales of $324.1 million, an increase of 12.1% over the same period in the prior year, and comparable net merchandise sales for the four-week period ended October 2, 2022 that increased 7.8% compared to the same period last year. Currency fluctuations continued to negatively impact net merchandise and comparable net merchandise sales by 2.0% and 2.1%, respectively, in the first month of the fiscal first quarter.

Our team continually strives for improvement, and with each new experience, our team becomes more agile and better prepared to take on the uncertainties and capitalize on potential opportunities going forward.

Fourth Quarter Financial Results

Total revenues for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2022 increased 12.3% to $1.02 billion compared to $909.6 million in the comparable period of the prior year. For the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2022, net...