Alyeska Investment Group L.P. Makes New Investment in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Alyeska Investment Group L.P. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,169,914 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $176,973,000. Ross Stores comprises approximately 0.7% of Alyeska Investment Group L.P.'s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. owned 0.35% of Ross Stores as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ROST. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth about $649,318,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 25.7% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 19,515,891 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $2,952,170,000 after purchasing an additional 3,995,760 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in Ross Stores by 8,209.0% in the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 2,381,201 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $360,204,000 after purchasing an additional 2,352,543 shares during the period. Madison Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter worth about $230,204,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Ross Stores by 411.3% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,458,963 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $220,697,000 after buying an additional 1,173,607 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In related news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total transaction of $1,481,947.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,868,364. This trade represents a 15.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total transaction of $671,272.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 94,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,826,540.99. This represents a 5.37 % 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 valued at $4,439,950 in the last 90 days. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ross Stores Trading Up 0.1 %

ROST stock traded up $0.14 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $141.61. 1,855,150 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,649,325. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The stock's fifty day moving average is $133.64 and its 200-day moving average is $142.40. The company has a market cap of $46.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

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

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 18th. This is a positive change from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.14%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ROST has been the topic of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. StockNews.com cut shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $166.00 to $161.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $160.73.

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.