Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC cut its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,776,510 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 14,087 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned approximately 0.54% of Ross Stores worth $267,383,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 262.1% during the 2nd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 210 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Industrial Alliance Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 97.8% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.22, for a total transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. The trade was a 57.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the business'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 transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. The trade was a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

ROST traded down $0.02 on Friday, reaching $154.87. The company had a trading volume of 1,323,540 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,333,026. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $127.53 and a 1 year high of $163.60. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $51.38 billion, a PE ratio of 24.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $145.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $145.26.

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

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be issued a $0.3675 dividend. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America upped their target price on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $180.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $171.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $171.69.

Ross Stores Company 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.