New Age Alpha Advisors LLC Invests $5.65 Million in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 37,330 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $5,647,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 152.9% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. ORG Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth approximately $57,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ross Stores news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 94,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,826,540.99. This trade represents a 5.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total value of $956,653.48. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,760,529.79. This trade represents a 5.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on ROST shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays set a $150.00 price objective on Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a "negative" rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $161.40.

Ross Stores Stock Up 1.9 %

NASDAQ ROST traded up $2.37 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $127.79. 3,318,252 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,563,517. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.16 billion, a PE ratio of 20.12, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $122.36 and a 12 month high of $163.60. The company has a 50 day moving average of $137.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $144.77.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.95 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This is a boost from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.63%.

Ross Stores Company 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.