Ethic Inc. Sells 3,552 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Ethic Inc. cut its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 12.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,444 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 3,552 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $5,939,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ROST. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 89.2% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,615,682 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,408,148,000 after buying an additional 3,118,591 shares in the last quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,390,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 40.6% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 17,353 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $3,694,000 after buying an additional 5,012 shares during the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,867,000. Finally, Nicholas Investment Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,559,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Zacks Research cut shares of Ross Stores from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 4th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $279.00 target price for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $294.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ross Stores from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $277.82.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, CEO James Conroy sold 49,205 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.48, for a total value of $11,291,563.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,349 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,830,408.52. This represents a 26.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Stephen Brinkley sold 6,424 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.66, for a total transaction of $1,475,335.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,665 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,865,383.90. This represents a 11.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ross Stores Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $237.00 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $75.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The business’s 50 day moving average is $231.07 and its 200-day moving average is $223.35. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $157.73 and a 12-month high of $257.00.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 20th. The apparel retailer reported $2.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.71. Ross Stores had a net margin of 10.85% and a return on equity of 39.29%. The firm had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.56 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th were paid a $0.4450 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Ross Stores’s dividend payout ratio is 21.55%.

Ross Stores Company Profile

Ross Stores, Inc is an off-price retailer operating Ross Dress for Less and dd’s DISCOUNTS. Its stores offer name-brand and designer merchandise at discounted prices, with product selection and availability varying by location and season.

Ross Dress for Less sells apparel, footwear, accessories, home fashions, furnishings, and other merchandise for the whole family. dd’s DISCOUNTS offers a similar off-price assortment, including clothing, shoes, home goods, and related products.

The company traces its origins to a department store founded in San Bruno, California, in 1950.