Filing Flows › Pricesmart (PSMT) › Takeover & LBO
Is Pricesmart (PSMT) a takeover target?
A leveraged buyout at today's price plus 30% ($214.76 a share) would return a loss of about 2% a year to a private-equity buyer over 5 years; no price, however low, gets a buyer to 20%. Historically 2.7% of companies with its figures were bought within a year (0.53× the average).
The buyout, step by step
| Entry | Amount | How |
|---|---|---|
| Offer price a share | $214.76 | today's $165.20 plus 30% |
| × shares | 30.2 million | |
| = Equity value | $6.5B | |
| + Debt refinanced | $169M | |
| − Cash | $332M | |
| = Enterprise value | $6.3B | 17.6× EBITDA of $361M |
| Fees | $127M | 2% of the price |
| New debt | $2.0B | 5.5× EBITDA at 7.65% a year; the limit that binds: 5.5× EBITDA |
| Buyer's own money | $4.5B | 69% of the cost |
5 years under the buyer
| Year | Revenue | EBITDA | Interest | Free cash flow | Debt left |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | $6.3B | $389M | $152M | −$72.5M | $2.1B |
| Year 2 | $6.8B | $416M | $157M | −$66.7M | $2.1B |
| Year 3 | $7.1B | $439M | $162M | −$59.8M | $2.2B |
| Year 4 | $7.5B | $457M | $167M | −$52.2M | $2.2B |
| Year 5 | $7.7B | $471M | $171M | −$44.1M | $2.3B |
The exit and the buyer's return
| Exit | Amount | |
|---|---|---|
| Exit multiple | 13.4× EBITDA | today's trading multiple, before any premium |
| Enterprise value at exit | $6.3B | |
| − Debt left | $2.3B | |
| = Buyer's equity | $4.0B | |
| Money multiple | 0.90× | on $4.5B put in |
| Buyer's yearly return (IRR) | −2.1% |
Price against return
What the buyer makes at other premiums over today's $165.20.
| Premium | Price a share | Buyer's IRR |
|---|---|---|
| 10% | $181.72 | 3.1% |
| 20% | $198.24 | 0.3% |
| 30% | $214.76 | −2.1% |
| 40% | $231.28 | −4.1% |
| 50% | $247.80 | −6.0% |
The figures used
| Figure | Amount | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue, last 12 months | $5.9B | |
| EBITDA, last 12 months | $361M | 6.1% of revenue |
| Depreciation and amortization | $99.5M | |
| Capital spending | $211M | |
| Debt | $169M | |
| Cash | $332M | |
| Share price | $165.20 | on Nov 6, 2026 |
Fixed rules, the same as the interactive view's starting point: the shares are bought at today's price plus 30%, the company's debt is refinanced and fees take 2%. New debt is the least of 5.5× EBITDA, 65% of the price and the amount whose interest EBITDA covers 2 times, at 7.65% a year (SOFR 3.89% plus the high-yield B spread 3.26% plus 0.5%, rates of Oct 15, 2026). Revenue grows 8.0% in the first year — the company's own rate, held between −3% and +8% — fading to 3% by year 5; the EBITDA margin, depreciation and capital spending stay at today's share of revenue; working capital takes 10% of each year's added revenue; tax is 27% of profit after interest. Every dollar of free cash flow repays debt. After 5 years the buyer sells at today's multiple of EBITDA.
What a takeover could cost
Takeovers on record paid a median premium of 32.5% over the share price before the deal (the middle half 20% to 51.8%), according to the 1,437 merger proxies and tender-offer responses on EDGAR that state a premium. At the median, Pricesmart would cost about $218.89 a share, $6.6B for all its shares.
| Premium | % | Price a share | All shares |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low end (a quarter of deals paid less) | 20% | $198.24 | $6.0B |
| Median | 32.5% | $218.89 | $6.6B |
| High end (a quarter paid more) | 51.8% | $250.77 | $7.6B |
The odds, from history
Historically 2.7% of companies with its figures were bought within a year (0.53× the average). Its figures put it in decile 2 of 10 (10 = the most likely to be bought). The odds come from a model of every merger proxy, tender-offer response and going-private statement filed on EDGAR since 2011, set against each company's size, margins, debt, cash flow and growth the year before.
Pricesmart's latest quarter
Pricesmart, Q4 FY26: revenue $1.5B (+14% year over year), operating margin 3.8%, net earnings $37.6M, operating cash flow $116M. The chart follows the revenue to costs, profit and cash.
Questions
Is Pricesmart being acquired?
No headline, 8-K or 13D about a sale is on file in the last year.
Could private equity buy Pricesmart?
A leveraged buyout at today's price plus 30% ($214.76 a share) would return a loss of about 2% a year to a private-equity buyer over 5 years; no price, however low, gets a buyer to 20%.
What would a takeover of Pricesmart cost?
Takeovers on record paid a median premium of 32.5% over the share price before the deal (the middle half 20% to 51.8%), according to the 1,437 merger proxies and tender-offer responses on EDGAR that state a premium. At the median, Pricesmart would cost about $218.89 a share, $6.6B for all its shares.
Updated Nov 8, 2026. Read automatically from SEC filings and public data; errors are possible. Not investment advice.