Russell Investments Group Ltd. Reduces Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 8.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 227,499 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 22,203 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.07% of Ross Stores worth $34,420,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $649,318,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its stake in Ross Stores by 8,209.0% in the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 2,381,201 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $360,204,000 after acquiring an additional 2,352,543 shares during the last quarter. Madison Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth about $230,204,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at about $173,329,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Ross Stores by 137.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $299,583,000 after purchasing an additional 1,144,774 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST traded up $2.62 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $141.51. 4,388,458 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,655,083. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $133.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $143.11. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $122.36 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The company has a market cap of $46.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.29, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57.

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Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.95 billion. Equities analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.14%. This is a positive change from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on ROST. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $165.00 price objective (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com cut shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $161.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total value of $1,481,947.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,868,364. This represents a 15.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total value of $956,653.48. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 139,091 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,760,529.79. This represents a 5.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

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.