Cercano Management LLC Acquires New Shares in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Cercano Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 110,593 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $16,729,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 152.9% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. ORG Partners LLC increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 434.1% during the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at about $48,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of Ross Stores stock traded down $1.09 on Friday, hitting $142.28. The stock had a trading volume of 1,727,917 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,655,966. The stock has a market cap of $46.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.17. The business's 50 day moving average is $134.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $142.33. 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, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.36 and a twelve month high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 analysts' expectations of $5.95 billion. Analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a $0.405 dividend. This is a boost from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores's payout ratio is 25.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on ROST shares. 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. Citigroup raised shares of Ross Stores from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $146.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Ross Stores from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the company from $140.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lowered their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $160.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total value of $956,653.48. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 139,091 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,760,529.79. This trade represents a 5.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total value of $1,481,947.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,868,364. This trade represents a 15.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Company 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.