United Asset Strategies Inc. Increases Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

United Asset Strategies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,129 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 382 shares during the period. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $772,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 262.1% in the 2nd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 97.8% in the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $139.72 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $114.06 and a 1-year high of $163.60. The business has a 50-day moving average of $148.57 and a 200-day moving average of $143.47. 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 company has a market capitalization of $46.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.54, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 23.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Gordon Haskett upgraded Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Loop Capital lifted their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. 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 stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $169.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares in the company, valued at $48,003,532.29. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock worth $11,093,051 over the last quarter. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.