Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Cullinan Associates Inc.

Cullinan Associates Inc. decreased its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 22.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,267 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 2,343 shares during the quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,213,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 888 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $123,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Ross Stores by 41.8% in the 4th quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 251 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 919 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust boosted its stake in Ross Stores by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 5,133 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $710,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 52.9% during the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 240 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ross Stores Trading Down 0.6 %

NASDAQ ROST opened at $144.40 on Wednesday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $107.30 and a 12 month high of $151.12. The company has a market capitalization of $48.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $138.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $140.51.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 23rd. The apparel retailer reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.09 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, March 5th that allows the company to repurchase $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the apparel retailer to reacquire up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 11th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 11th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.79%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 941 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.37, for a total value of $130,206.17. Following the transaction, the director now owns 973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $134,634.01. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on ROST. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $159.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, June 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Guggenheim raised their target price on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $145.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 24th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $159.06.

About Ross Stores

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.