Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Sells 153,400 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lessened its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 28.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 379,986 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 153,400 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.12% of Ross Stores worth $57,480,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 152.9% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. ORG Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 434.1% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth approximately $57,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.1 %

ROST traded up $0.20 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $139.57. 598,039 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,659,468. The stock has a market cap of $45.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.11. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.36 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $133.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $142.65.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.14. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.95 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.16%. This is a positive change from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. Ross Stores's payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In related news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,826,540.99. The trade was a 5.37 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total value of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,760,529.79. This represents a 5.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ROST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $165.00 price target (down from $178.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $190.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $150.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Ross Stores from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $160.87.

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.