Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Position Boosted by Townsquare Capital LLC

Townsquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) by 6.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 55,682 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,431 shares during the quarter. 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 and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PGGM Investments grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 724.1% in the 2nd quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 24,848 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $3,611,000 after buying an additional 21,833 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 47.5% in the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 13,124 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $1,907,000 after buying an additional 4,228 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 42.1% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 63,105 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $9,260,000 after buying an additional 18,685 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 917.2% in the 3rd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 29,498 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $4,440,000 after buying an additional 26,598 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 10.3% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,737,042 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock worth $397,747,000 after buying an additional 254,720 shares in the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other 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 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 approximately $16,038,546.36. This represents a 7.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 14,887 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $1,694,665.26. This trade represents a 57.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST opened at $154.89 on Thursday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $127.53 and a one year high of $163.60. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $145.30 and a 200-day moving average of $145.05. The company 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 debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.15 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.33 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be issued a $0.3675 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. Ross Stores’s payout ratio is currently 23.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $162.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. UBS Group increased their price target on Ross Stores from $147.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.