STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY

12 Months Ended

Aug. 31, 2012

Equity [Abstract]

STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY

STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

Dividends

			First Payment				Second Payment
Declared	Amount		Record Date	Date Paid	Amount		Record Date	Date Paid	Amount
1/25/12	$	0.60	2/15/12	2/29/12	$	0.30	8/15/12	8/31/12	$	0.30
1/19/11	0.60		2/15/11	2/28/11	0.30		8/15/11	8/31/11	0.30
1/27/10	0.50		2/15/10	2/26/10	0.25		8/13/10	8/31/10	0.25

The Company anticipates the ongoing payment of semi-annual dividends in subsequent periods, although the actual declaration of future dividends, the amount of such dividends, and the establishment of record and payment dates is subject to final determination by the Board of Directors at its discretion after its review of the Company’s financial performance and anticipated capital requirements.

Stockholder Contributions

No stockholder contributions were recorded for fiscal years 2012 and 2011.

In December 2009, Robert E. Price, the Company's Chairman of the Board, contributed approximately $396,000 in capital to the Company to fund a special holiday bonus to PriceSmart's non-management employees in memory of the Company's founder, Sol Price.

Comprehensive Income and Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss

The following table summarizes the foreign currency translation differences of the assets and liabilities of the Company's foreign operations that are primarily translated to U.S. dollars when the functional currency in its foreign subsidiaries is not the U.S dollar, the recording of derivative instruments and hedging activities and the recording of service costs, actuarial gains/(losses) and interest cost related to defined benefit plans. These gains/(losses) are recorded as a component of other comprehensive income or loss:

	Years Ended August 31,
	2012			2011			2010
Other Comprehensive Income or Loss:
Unrealized expense on defined benefit plan, net of tax (1)	$	199		$	(273	)	$	—
Change in fair value of interest rate swaps, net of tax (2)	(398		)	(172		)	(112		)
Foreign currency translation differences for merger of foreign operations (3)	(5,604		)	—			—
Correction of foreign currency translations for prior years related to foreign operations affecting Property and equipment, net (3)	(3,277		)	(4,851		)	—
Foreign currency translation differences for foreign operations	(1,187		)	(947		)	670
Other Comprehensive Income or Loss, net of tax	$	(10,267	)	$	(6,243	)	$	558

⁽¹⁾ See Note 7 - Retirement Plan

⁽²⁾ See Note 13 - Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities

⁽³⁾ See Note 1 - Company Overview and Basis of Presentation

The following table presents the components of accumulated other comprehensive loss reported on the Company’s consolidated balance sheets:

	August 31,
	2012			2011
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss:
Change in fair value of interest rate and cross currency interest rate swaps, net of tax	$	(1,146	)	$	(748	)
Prior service cost accrual (including amortization) on defined benefit plan, net of tax	(74		)	(273		)
Foreign-currency translation adjustment	(31,962		)	(21,894		)
Balance at August 31, 2012 and 2011	$	(33,182	)	$	(22,915	)

Retained Earnings Not Available for Distribution

As of August 31, 2012 and 2011, retained earnings included retained earnings designated as legal reserves of various subsidiaries of approximately $5.5 million and $4.4 million, respectively, which cannot be distributed as dividends to PriceSmart, Inc. according to applicable statutory regulations.