Valley Wealth Managers Inc. Sells 320 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Valley Wealth Managers Inc. trimmed its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 0.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 133,345 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 320 shares during the period. Ross Stores accounts for 1.5% of Valley Wealth Managers Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Valley Wealth Managers Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $20,070,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 97.8% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST traded up $0.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $142.48. 286,514 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,260,562. The stock has a market cap of $47.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $146.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $144.04. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $119.73 and a 1 year high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 42.43% and a net margin of 9.82%. The company had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.32 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. The trade was a 13.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 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 value of $1,302,084.24. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROST has been the topic of several research reports. Loop Capital raised 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. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.00.

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.