98,431 Shares in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Acquired by Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 98,431 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $14,914,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,826,540.99. This trade represents a 5.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 139,091 shares in the company, valued at $17,760,529.79. This represents a 5.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950 in the last three months. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of ROST traded up $0.64 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $139.53. The stock had a trading volume of 1,411,222 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,638,565. 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 company has a market capitalization of $45.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $133.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $143.26. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analysts' expectations of $5.95 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This is a positive change from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.16%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Ross Stores from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $161.67.

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.