Axa S.A. Sells 39,476 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Axa S.A. reduced its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 21.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 140,888 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 39,476 shares during the quarter. Axa S.A.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $20,474,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 41.8% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 251 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Ross Stores to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Three equities research 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,003,532.29. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Ross Stores news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,003,532.29. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Stock Down 0.2 %

Ross Stores stock opened at $152.82 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $108.35 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The company has a market cap of $50.98 billion, a PE ratio of 25.77, a PEG ratio of 2.44 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 business’s 50-day simple moving average is $147.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $143.20.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be issued a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 24.79%.

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.