Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Ameritas Investment Partners Inc.

Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,287 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 113 shares during the quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,931,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in Ross Stores by 196.4% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 160,831 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $23,372,000 after purchasing an additional 106,571 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its stake in Ross Stores by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 330,543 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $48,036,000 after purchasing an additional 25,376 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Ross Stores by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 60,718 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $8,824,000 after purchasing an additional 4,063 shares in the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth $357,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its stake in Ross Stores by 16.5% during the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 540,512 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $78,547,000 after purchasing an additional 76,450 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ross Stores Stock Down 0.1 %

Ross Stores stock opened at $154.31 on Monday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $108.35 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.56. The company has a market capitalization of $51.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.02, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $147.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $143.06.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.09. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 42.43% and a net margin of 9.82%. The business had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.32 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on ROST. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays upped their price objective on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total transaction of $7,524,868.05. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Ross Stores news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total value of $7,524,868.05. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,003,532.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

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.