Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Holdings Lifted by Townsquare Capital LLC

Townsquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 6.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 55,682 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after buying an additional 3,431 shares during the quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $8,381,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its stake 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 buying an additional 975,190 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ross Stores by 59.4% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,261,102 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $183,263,000 after acquiring an additional 469,717 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Ross Stores by 27.8% during the second quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,814,440 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $263,675,000 after acquiring an additional 394,774 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 24.2% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,007,528 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $291,734,000 after purchasing an additional 390,518 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,310,364 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $481,062,000 after purchasing an additional 347,006 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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 stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This represents a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total value of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 57.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST traded up $0.51 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $154.89. The company had a trading volume of 2,330,157 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,337,415. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.39, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.09. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $145.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $145.11. 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 $127.53 and a one year high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.33 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The company 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. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ROST shares. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, November 22nd. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $185.00 to $177.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target 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. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Five 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $171.69.

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.