NEOS Investment Management LLC Purchases 7,680 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

NEOS Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 23.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,164 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after buying an additional 7,680 shares during the quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $6,076,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 26,182 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $3,961,000 after buying an additional 2,740 shares in the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co increased its position in Ross Stores by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 33,859 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $5,122,000 after buying an additional 4,414 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 576,424 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $88,930,000 after buying an additional 38,970 shares in the last quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $514,000. Finally, Summitry LLC lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Summitry LLC now owns 352,879 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $53,380,000 after purchasing an additional 6,871 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company's stock.

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Ross Stores Price Performance

ROST traded up $2.61 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $128.03. 1,675,708 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,557,293. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.36 and a one year high of $163.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. The business 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 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 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. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This is an increase from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays set a $150.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $165.00 price objective (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com downgraded Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Loop Capital dropped their price target on Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $161.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 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. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 139,091 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,760,529.79. The trade was a 5.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

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.