Townsquare Capital LLC Boosts Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Townsquare Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 6.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 55,682 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,431 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC’s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $8,381,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PGGM Investments grew its position in Ross Stores by 724.1% during the second quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 24,848 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $3,611,000 after acquiring an additional 21,833 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co grew its position in Ross Stores by 47.5% during the second quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 13,124 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,907,000 after acquiring an additional 4,228 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in Ross Stores by 42.1% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 63,105 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $9,260,000 after acquiring an additional 18,685 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC grew its position in Ross Stores by 917.2% during the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 29,498 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $4,440,000 after acquiring an additional 26,598 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Ross Stores by 10.3% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,737,042 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $397,747,000 after acquiring an additional 254,720 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on ROST. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the company’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 transaction of $2,266,099.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 11,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,694,665.26. This represents a 57.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.64, for a total value of $1,302,084.24. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,038,546.36. This trade represents 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 currently owned by insiders.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $154.89 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $145.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $145.05. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $127.53 and a 52-week high of $163.60. 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 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 announced 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. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.33 earnings per share. Ross Stores’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.3675 per share. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 23.15%.

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.