Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Raises Stock Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 149,104 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after buying an additional 17,184 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.'s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $22,442,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ROST. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the second quarter worth about $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 262.1% in the second quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC increased its position in Ross Stores by 97.8% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $171.88.

Ross Stores Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of ROST stock traded down $3.73 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $138.59. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,299,936 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,244,438. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company has a market capitalization of $45.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.09. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $147.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $143.75. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $119.73 and a 1-year high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.32 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th were paid a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.06%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total value of $7,524,868.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares in the company, valued at $48,003,532.29. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Barbara Rentler sold 48,885 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.93, for a total transaction of $7,524,868.05. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 311,853 shares of the company's stock, valued at $48,003,532.29. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 72,138 shares of company stock worth $11,093,051 over the last 90 days. 2.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.