Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Acquired by Intech Investment Management LLC

Intech Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 63.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,120 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,848 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,276,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its stake in Ross Stores by 262.1% during the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the second quarter worth $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 136 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $146.09 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $145.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $144.70. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $48.47 billion, a PE ratio of 23.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.09. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $127.53 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 42.42%. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.33 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup cut shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.69.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. This represents a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. This represents a 57.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051. Insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores 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.