Cerity Partners LLC Acquires 32,846 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 83,214 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after buying an additional 32,846 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $12,525,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 262.1% during the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 97.8% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup lowered shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $179.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $171.69.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST traded up $0.92 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $154.21. The company had a trading volume of 1,192,812 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,330,428. 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 market cap of $51.16 billion, a PE ratio of 24.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $145.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $144.83. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $127.53 and a 1-year 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 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.15 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.33 earnings per share. Ross Stores's revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other Ross Stores news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. The trade was a 57.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. This trade represents a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Ross Stores

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.