Summitry LLC Grows Holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Summitry LLC grew its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 352,879 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,871 shares during the period. Ross Stores accounts for approximately 2.6% of Summitry LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest position. Summitry LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $53,380,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,965,695 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $295,857,000 after purchasing an additional 151,255 shares during the period. Nwam LLC increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 16.1% during the third quarter. Nwam LLC now owns 1,651 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $248,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 65.2% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 83,214 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $12,525,000 after buying an additional 32,846 shares during the period. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 11.7% in the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,894 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $436,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in Ross Stores by 11.6% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 62,361 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $9,386,000 after acquiring an additional 6,499 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,826,540.99. This represents a 5.37 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ross Stores Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $128.13 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $139.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $145.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.18, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.15. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.36 and a 12-month high of $163.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.95 billion. Analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued 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 is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.26%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 25.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on ROST. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ross Stores from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Loop Capital dropped their target price on Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays set a $150.00 price target on Ross Stores in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated a “negative” rating on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.40.

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.