Fulton Bank N.A. Buys 478 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Fulton Bank N.A. raised its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 24.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,416 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 478 shares during the period. Fulton Bank N.A.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $355,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ross Stores in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 52.9% in the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 240 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 41.8% during the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 251 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, Mendota Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ross Stores news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 941 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.37, for a total value of $130,206.17. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $134,634.01. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 941 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.37, for a total transaction of $130,206.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $134,634.01. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CMO Brian R. Morrow sold 10,734 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.00, for a total value of $1,567,164.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 62,711 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,155,806. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 48,717 shares of company stock worth $7,141,031. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Ross Stores Price Performance

ROST stock opened at $149.29 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $49.80 billion, a PE ratio of 25.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $137.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $139.87. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $106.98 and a 1 year high of $151.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $4.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.83 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 42.24% and a net margin of 9.60%. Ross Stores’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.09 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.10 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 11th will be given a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 11th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $143.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Ross Stores from $135.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. UBS Group increased their target price on Ross Stores from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $156.58.

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.