Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Increases Stock Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 9.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,897,307 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after buying an additional 256,238 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.88% of Ross Stores worth $438,283,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 411.3% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,458,963 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $220,697,000 after purchasing an additional 1,173,607 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,474 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Alexis Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at $85,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its position in Ross Stores by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 417,707 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $63,151,000 after purchasing an additional 11,724 shares during the period. Finally, Teca Partners LP increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Teca Partners LP now owns 91,098 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $13,780,000 after purchasing an additional 3,899 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.2 %

ROST traded up $0.33 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $138.22. The company had a trading volume of 2,294,456 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,665,097. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $122.36 and a 52 week high of $163.60. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $133.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $142.71. The stock has a market cap of $45.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.77, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.95 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a $0.405 dividend. This is a positive change from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.17%. Ross Stores's payout ratio is presently 25.63%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total transaction of $671,272.47. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 94,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,826,540.99. The trade was a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total value of $1,481,947.60. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at $7,868,364. This represents a 15.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. 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 report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $160.87.

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.