Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Acquired by Natixis Advisors LLC

Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 8.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 666,450 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 54,037 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned 0.20% of Ross Stores worth $100,307,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ROST. Banco Santander S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 9.3% in the first quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 3,015 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $442,000 after buying an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its position in Ross Stores by 36.6% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 3,464 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $508,000 after purchasing an additional 929 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Ross Stores by 1.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,916,192 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $4,243,740,000 after purchasing an additional 346,474 shares during the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board increased its position in Ross Stores by 8.8% during the first quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 21,001 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $3,082,000 after purchasing an additional 1,693 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its position in Ross Stores by 155.5% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 419 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Down 1.2 %

Ross Stores stock traded down $1.64 during trading on Friday, reaching $140.69. The stock had a trading volume of 2,837,869 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,701,991. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $119.73 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $146.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $144.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market cap of $46.68 billion, a PE ratio of 22.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.09.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 42.43%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.32 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.11 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $173.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $170.00.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 72,138 shares of company stock worth $11,093,051. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.