Toronto Dominion Bank Increases Stock Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Toronto Dominion Bank raised its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 177,622 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 10,175 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank owned approximately 0.05% of Ross Stores worth $26,734,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Ross Stores by 64.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,862,684 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $581,373,000 after acquiring an additional 1,507,922 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 68.8% during the 2nd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,391,856 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $347,585,000 after purchasing an additional 975,190 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 4,787.8% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 629,744 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $94,783,000 after purchasing an additional 616,860 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 59.4% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,261,102 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $183,263,000 after buying an additional 469,717 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Ross Stores by 27.8% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,814,440 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $263,675,000 after buying an additional 394,774 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at $16,038,546.36. This trade represents a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. 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 Monday, November 18th. Loop Capital upped their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $171.69.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of Ross Stores stock traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $153.88. 2,129,226 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,343,010. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $146.07 and a 200-day moving average of $146.57. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12 month low of $127.53 and a 12 month high of $163.60. The company has a market cap of $51.05 billion, a PE ratio of 24.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business's revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.33 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $0.3675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.15%.

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.