LPL Financial LLC Cuts Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

LPL Financial LLC decreased its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 38.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 243,270 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 149,831 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.07% of Ross Stores worth $36,799,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of ROST. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at $17,221,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its stake in Ross Stores by 45.4% during the 4th quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 31,444 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $4,757,000 after acquiring an additional 9,813 shares during the last quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,893,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 438,373 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $66,313,000 after purchasing an additional 30,180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First National Bank of Hutchinson increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 8,553 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $1,294,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $165.00 price target (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $161.40.

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Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of ROST traded up $2.37 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $127.79. 3,318,252 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,563,517. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $137.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $144.77. The company has a market cap of $42.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.12, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.27%. This is an increase from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related 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 completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 94,063 shares of the company's stock, 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 SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total transaction of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 139,091 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,760,529.79. This trade represents a 5.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.10% 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.