IFM Investors Pty Ltd Sells 203 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd reduced its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 0.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 67,019 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 203 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $10,087,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ROST. Bogart Wealth LLC increased its position in Ross Stores by 18,243.0% in the third quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 27,331 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $4,114,000 after buying an additional 27,182 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter worth about $216,000. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its stake in Ross Stores by 38.2% in the 3rd quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 1,958 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $295,000 after acquiring an additional 541 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 20.8% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 11,763 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,770,000 after purchasing an additional 2,022 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 21.9% during the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,305 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,099,000 after purchasing an additional 1,314 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. 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 accessible through this link. In other Ross Stores news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of Ross Stores 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 311,853 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,003,532.29. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 72,138 shares of company stock valued at $11,093,051. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Ross Stores stock opened at $144.38 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $112.39 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. 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 market cap of $47.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.09. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $149.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $143.39.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 23.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on ROST. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. TD Cowen raised their target price on Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital upped their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” 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 given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $169.71.

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.