Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Purchased by Qsemble Capital Management LP

Qsemble Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 55.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,744 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after buying an additional 5,604 shares during the period. Qsemble Capital Management LP's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,370,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 17.9% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 690 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $104,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its stake in Ross Stores by 19.1% during the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 473 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter valued at about $481,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 28.1% in the 3rd quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 16,627 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $2,502,000 after buying an additional 3,652 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 11.6% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 62,361 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $9,386,000 after buying an additional 6,499 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. This represents a 57.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,038,546.36. This represents a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ ROST traded up $1.09 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $154.38. The company had a trading volume of 2,742,668 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,337,442. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $127.53 and a 1-year high of $163.60. The company has a market capitalization of $51.22 billion, a PE ratio of 24.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $145.22 and its 200 day simple moving average is $144.98.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The company had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.33 EPS. Ross Stores's revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Citigroup cut Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $179.00 to $152.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Loop Capital upped their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $171.69.

Ross Stores 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.