Natixis Raises Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Natixis increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 223.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 88,603 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after buying an additional 61,199 shares during the quarter. Natixis' holdings in Ross Stores were worth $13,403,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 152.9% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. ORG Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% during the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth $57,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.48, for a total transaction of $657,097.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 110,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,400,425.20. This represents a 4.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the firm'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 transaction of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares in the company, valued at $17,760,529.79. This trade represents a 5.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,398 shares of company stock valued at $4,439,950 over the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

ROST opened at $139.63 on Friday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $133.48 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $142.84. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The company has a market cap of $45.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.99, 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 results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. Equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This is a boost from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores's payout ratio is 25.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock 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 for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $166.00 to $161.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $160.87.

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.

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