Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by MetLife Investment Management LLC

MetLife Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 2.9% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 90,115 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after selling 2,728 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $13,563,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 42.1% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 63,105 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $9,260,000 after acquiring an additional 18,685 shares in the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 7,041 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,033,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in Ross Stores by 135.2% in the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 24,233 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $3,557,000 after purchasing an additional 13,931 shares in the last quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 37,844.4% during the 1st quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 6,830 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,002,000 after buying an additional 6,812 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in Ross Stores during the 1st quarter worth about $16,130,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Price Performance

NASDAQ ROST opened at $154.89 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $145.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $145.05. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.53 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.39 billion, a PE ratio of 24.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion during 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%. Ross Stores’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.33 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total transaction of $1,302,084.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. This represents a 7.51 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 11,133 shares in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. The trade was a 57.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ROST. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on 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, Barclays upped their price target on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.