Korea Investment CORP Reduces Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Korea Investment CORP reduced its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 227,766 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 24,627 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned 0.07% of Ross Stores worth $34,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Ross Stores by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,965,695 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $295,857,000 after buying an additional 151,255 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 11.7% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,894 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $436,000 after buying an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter valued at about $481,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 473 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 17.9% in the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 690 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company's stock.

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Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total value of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 139,091 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,760,529.79. This represents a 5.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was 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 trade represents a 5.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a "negative" rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a 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 note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $161.40.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Ross Stores stock traded up $2.37 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $127.79. 3,318,252 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,563,517. The company's fifty day moving average is $137.81 and its 200-day moving average is $144.77. The firm has a market cap of $42.16 billion, a PE ratio of 20.12, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $122.36 and a 52 week high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during 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 forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

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 given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. This is a boost from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.63%.

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.