Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by HM Payson & Co.

HM Payson & Co. lowered its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 6.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,687 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 196 shares during the quarter. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $404,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 20.9% in the first quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 41,013 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $6,019,000 after buying an additional 7,085 shares during the last quarter. Norden Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 1st quarter worth about $333,000. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 9,417 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,382,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 1.5% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 37,077 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $5,442,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Resonant Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 2.1% during the first quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,745 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $696,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST stock opened at $140.06 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $46.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.09. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $116.50 and a 1-year high of $163.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $148.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $143.52.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released 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. The company had revenue of $5.29 billion for 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%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.32 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given 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 yield of 1.05%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 23.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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 transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following the completion of 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. Insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock worth $11,093,051 over the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America upped their price objective on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a “market perform” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of 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 issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.71.

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.