Sterling Capital Management LLC Sells 45,837 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Sterling Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 74.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,129 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 45,837 shares during the quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $2,440,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,287,162 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $1,250,423,000 after purchasing an additional 135,117 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,620,083 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $1,152,690,000 after buying an additional 807,850 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at about $649,318,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Ross Stores by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,805,427 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $575,647,000 after acquiring an additional 154,486 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Ross Stores by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,582,472 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $541,921,000 after acquiring an additional 142,200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on ROST shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised Ross Stores from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $140.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $165.00 price target (down previously from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, 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 research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five 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 MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $160.87.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,270 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.70, for a total value of $672,979.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 93,126 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,892,190.20. This represents a 5.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was 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. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

ROST traded up $0.95 during trading on Friday, hitting $139.63. The stock had a trading volume of 2,287,417 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,664,781. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $122.36 and a 12 month high of $163.60. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $133.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $142.88. The firm has a market cap of $45.91 billion, a PE ratio of 21.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11.

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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. Analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 is an increase from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.16%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is 25.63%.

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.