Insider Selling: Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) COO Sells 8,366 Shares of Stock

Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 8,366 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $16,038,546.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Ross Stores Stock Up 2.5 %

Ross Stores stock opened at $154.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $108.35 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $147.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $143.11. The firm has a market cap of $51.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.09.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $5.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.25 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 42.43% and a net margin of 9.82%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.32 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be paid a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.47 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is 24.79%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ross Stores

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 36,542 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $5,057,000 after buying an additional 449 shares during the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. grew its position in Ross Stores by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 108,249 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $14,981,000 after buying an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its stake in Ross Stores by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 10,111 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $1,399,000 after acquiring an additional 786 shares during the period. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $798,000. Finally, Balentine LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth approximately $230,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $163.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Ross Stores from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $169.71.

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.