Summit Global Investments Reduces Stock Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Summit Global Investments cut its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 34.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,241 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 5,961 shares during the quarter. Summit Global Investments' holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,700,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hahn Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 40.9% during the 4th quarter. Hahn Capital Management LLC now owns 74,059 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $11,203,000 after acquiring an additional 21,500 shares during the period. Sovran Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $269,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 22.6% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 2,847 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $431,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the period. Oak Ridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC now owns 115,849 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $17,524,000 after purchasing an additional 11,060 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 137.7% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,976,140 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $299,583,000 after buying an additional 1,144,774 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ROST shares. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a "negative" rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $165.00 target price (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $161.40.

Ross Stores Stock Down 1.0 %

NASDAQ:ROST traded down $1.33 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $127.86. 1,352,398 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,433,196. The company has a market cap of $42.18 billion, a PE ratio of 20.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.36 and a one year high of $163.60. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $139.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $145.42.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. Equities analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This is an increase from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was 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 approximately $11,826,540.99. This represents a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company's stock.

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.