Ascent Group LLC Makes New Investment in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Ascent Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 9,155 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,378,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FMR LLC grew its stake in Ross Stores by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,812,233 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $1,025,309,000 after acquiring an additional 316,652 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,440,272 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $517,795,000 after buying an additional 129,908 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 10.3% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,737,042 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $397,747,000 after buying an additional 254,720 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Ross Stores by 15.5% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,477,142 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $359,991,000 after purchasing an additional 331,996 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Ross Stores by 68.8% in the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,391,856 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $347,585,000 after buying an additional 975,190 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ ROST traded up $0.76 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $154.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,155,063 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,335,068. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $145.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $145.80. The firm has a market cap of $51.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.10. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $127.53 and a 52 week high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.33 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.15%.

Insider Activity

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value 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. The trade was a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 57.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ROST shares. Bank of America raised their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Citigroup lowered Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $171.69.

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.