Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC Has $267.64 Million Stock Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,841,718 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 31,544 shares during the quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC owned 0.55% of Ross Stores worth $267,639,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 262.1% during the 2nd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Ross Stores in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 41.8% in the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 251 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on ROST. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Gordon Haskett raised Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ross Stores currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,038,546.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total value of $7,524,868.05. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 over the last ninety days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST opened at $154.31 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $51.47 billion, a PE ratio of 26.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.09. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $147.23 and a 200-day moving average of $143.14. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $108.35 and a one year high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

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

Ross Stores 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.