Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Stock Holdings Lowered by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 28.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,601 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 22,926 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $8,225,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ROST. Commerce Bank boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 232.6% during the fourth quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 32,182 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $4,454,000 after acquiring an additional 22,506 shares during the period. SageView Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at about $278,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 14,541 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,975,000 after buying an additional 641 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 11.1% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 516,798 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $71,532,000 after acquiring an additional 51,813 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 2,188 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ROST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group raised their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.71.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,038,546.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the firm’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 value of $1,302,084.24. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST stock opened at $149.98 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market cap of $50.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.09. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $108.35 and a one year high of $163.60. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $147.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $143.09.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.32 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.