Bridgewater Associates LP Acquires 58,655 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Bridgewater Associates LP increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 175.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 92,046 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 58,655 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $13,924,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hahn Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 40.9% in the fourth quarter. Hahn Capital Management LLC now owns 74,059 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $11,203,000 after acquiring an additional 21,500 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,620,083 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $1,152,690,000 after purchasing an additional 807,850 shares in the last quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth $269,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 22.6% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 2,847 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $431,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the period. Finally, Oak Ridge Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 115,849 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $17,524,000 after acquiring an additional 11,060 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.48, for a total transaction of $657,097.28. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 110,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,400,425.20. This trade represents a 4.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total transaction of $671,272.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,826,540.99. This trade represents a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST traded up $2.57 on Tuesday, hitting $138.06. The company had a trading volume of 396,471 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,656,055. The stock has a market cap of $45.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $133.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $142.74. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $122.36 and a 1-year high of $163.60.

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

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date was 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 dividend yield of 1.17%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ROST. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Ross Stores from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Loop Capital reduced their price target on Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $165.00 target price (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $160.87.

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.