Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Has $2.96 Million Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 17.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 19,555 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,928 shares during the quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,962,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,965,695 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $295,857,000 after buying an additional 151,255 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the 3rd quarter worth $392,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 61.3% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,567 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $988,000 after acquiring an additional 2,495 shares during the period. Claro Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 64.2% in the third quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 3,039 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $457,000 after purchasing an additional 1,188 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 11.7% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 179,632 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $27,036,000 after purchasing an additional 18,801 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

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Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of ROST stock traded down $1.06 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $123.54. The company had a trading volume of 6,659,751 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,426,242. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $122.36 and a 12 month high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The firm's fifty day moving average is $139.96 and its 200 day moving average is $145.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.46, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This is an increase from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is 25.63%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the company'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 transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,826,540.99. This represents a 5.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on ROST shares. UBS Group decreased their target price on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price 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. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $161.40.

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.