Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by IFG Advisory LLC

IFG Advisory LLC lowered its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 36.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,374 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 6,547 shares during the quarter. IFG Advisory LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,574,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of ROST. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the first quarter valued at about $87,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the first quarter valued at about $200,000. Cibc World Market Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 5.7% during the 1st quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 20,004 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,810,000 after buying an additional 1,085 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its position in Ross Stores by 27.4% during the 1st quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 12,174 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,128,000 after acquiring an additional 2,615 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 163,788 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $14,826,000 after acquiring an additional 1,470 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ROST shares. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $144.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 22nd. UBS Group raised their target price on Ross Stores from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $145.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $155.21.

Ross Stores Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of ROST stock opened at $147.19 on Thursday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $99.00 and a 1 year high of $151.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.55 billion, a PE ratio of 26.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 1.04. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $144.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $131.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.77.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The apparel retailer reported $1.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.19. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.20% and a return on equity of 41.15%. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. Ross Stores’s revenue was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 5.89 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This is a positive change from Ross Stores’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.44%.

Ross Stores declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, March 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.10 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the apparel retailer to repurchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total transaction of $3,056,067.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 114,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,616,788.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 21,056 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.14, for a total value of $3,056,067.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 114,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,616,788.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Patricia H. Mueller sold 2,265 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.38, for a total transaction of $329,285.70. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $278,257.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.00% 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 primarily to middle income households; and dd's DISCOUNTS stores sell its products at department and discount stores for households with moderate income.