Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Bought by Two Sigma Securities LLC

Two Sigma Securities LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 140.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,992 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 7,592 shares during the period. Two Sigma Securities LLC's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,965,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at about $649,318,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 19,515,891 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $2,952,170,000 after purchasing an additional 3,995,760 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its holdings 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 buying an additional 2,352,543 shares during the period. Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at about $230,204,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 411.3% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,458,963 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $220,697,000 after acquiring an additional 1,173,607 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total transaction of $956,653.48. Following the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the business'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 transaction of $671,272.47. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,826,540.99. This represents a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group cut their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $160.87.

Ross Stores Trading Down 0.2 %

ROST traded down $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $139.71. 2,289,826 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,668,112. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $133.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $142.68. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.94 billion, a PE ratio of 22.00, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 41.83%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This is an increase from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.16%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.