Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Sells 25,602 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. cut its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 295,714 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 25,602 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $33,158,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $369,081,000. Morgan Stanley increased its position in Ross Stores by 84.6% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,742,218 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $550,429,000 after acquiring an additional 2,173,922 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in Ross Stores by 279.2% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,831,328 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $194,359,000 after purchasing an additional 1,348,400 shares in the last quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 125.5% in the 2nd quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 2,208,016 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $247,585,000 after purchasing an additional 1,228,816 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 21.0% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,036,224 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $640,624,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048,817 shares in the last quarter. 84.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Brian R. Morrow sold 25,945 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.53, for a total value of $3,153,095.85. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 67,033 shares in the company, valued at $8,146,520.49. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Ross Stores news, CMO Brian R. Morrow sold 25,945 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.53, for a total transaction of $3,153,095.85. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 67,033 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,146,520.49. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.07, for a total transaction of $2,381,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 305,425 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,366,954.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 89,948 shares of company stock worth $10,643,727 over the last three months. 2.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ROST. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Thursday, October 5th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Ross Stores from $125.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Friday, August 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Ross Stores from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 18th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $129.38.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ ROST opened at $128.82 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $43.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.51, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.00. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $99.00 and a twelve month high of $131.31. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $116.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $112.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 16th. The apparel retailer reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.11. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 39.34% and a net margin of 8.75%. The company had revenue of $4.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.84 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.00 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 5th will be paid a $0.335 dividend. This represents a $1.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.04%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 4th. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.53%.

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 primarily to middle income households; and dd's DISCOUNTS stores sell its products at department and discount stores for households with moderate income.