Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Position Cut by Blue Trust Inc.

Blue Trust Inc. lowered its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 29.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 2,415 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 1,029 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $351,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in Ross Stores by 262.1% during the 2nd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter worth $33,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Loop Capital upped their target price on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Gordon Haskett raised Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $169.71.

Ross Stores Price Performance

NASDAQ ROST opened at $145.24 on Thursday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $112.39 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $149.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $143.39. The company has a market cap of $48.45 billion, a PE ratio of 24.49, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

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

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.01%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 24.79%.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

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.