Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) CMO Sells $671,272.47 in Stock

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of Ross Stores 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 $11,826,540.99. This represents a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Ross Stores Price Performance

ROST traded down $1.06 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $123.54. The company's stock 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 current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business's 50-day moving average price is $139.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $145.63. The stock has a market cap of $40.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.95 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. This is a positive change from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ROST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI dropped 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. Barclays set a $150.00 target price on Ross Stores in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. One research 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $161.40.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ROST. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Ross Stores by 25.7% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 19,515,891 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $2,952,170,000 after buying an additional 3,995,760 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 0.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,137,281 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $2,127,802,000 after acquiring an additional 67,861 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,287,162 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $1,250,423,000 after acquiring an additional 135,117 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,620,083 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $1,152,690,000 after purchasing an additional 807,850 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth about $649,318,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

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.