Steph & Co. cut its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST – Free Report) by 19.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,648 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 394 shares during the period. Steph & Co.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $242,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at about $523,185,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Ross Stores by 515.8% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,756,881 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $243,135,000 after buying an additional 1,471,585 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its position in Ross Stores by 1,437.1% in the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,026,367 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $142,039,000 after buying an additional 959,594 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new stake in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at about $102,083,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Ross Stores by 19.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,121,854 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $465,563,000 after buying an additional 673,670 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Ross Stores Trading Up 0.2 %
ROST stock traded up $0.23 during trading on Monday, reaching $149.52. The company had a trading volume of 368,080 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,268,027. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $107.30 and a 52 week high of $151.12. The company has a market cap of $49.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.07, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a 50 day moving average of $137.23 and a 200 day moving average of $139.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.03.
Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 23rd. The apparel retailer reported $1.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.11. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 42.24%. The company had revenue of $4.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.83 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.09 earnings per share. Ross Stores’s revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Ross Stores declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 5th that permits the company to buyback $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the apparel retailer to buy up to 4.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.
Ross Stores Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 11th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 24.79%.
Insider Activity at Ross Stores
In related news, CMO Brian R. Morrow sold 10,734 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.00, for a total transaction of $1,567,164.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 62,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,155,806. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CMO Brian R. Morrow sold 10,734 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.00, for a total transaction of $1,567,164.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 62,711 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,155,806. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 941 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.37, for a total transaction of $130,206.17. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $134,634.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 48,717 shares of company stock valued at $7,141,031 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
ROST has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Ross Stores from $138.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Loop Capital boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $156.58.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Ross Stores
Ross Stores Company Profile
Ross Stores, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates off-price retail apparel and home fashion stores under the Ross Dress for Less and dd's DISCOUNTS brand names in the United States. Its stores primarily offer apparel, accessories, footwear, and home fashions. The company's Ross Dress for Less stores sell its products at department and specialty stores to middle income households; and dd's DISCOUNTS stores sell its products at department and discount stores for households with moderate income.
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