Brown Advisory Inc. Increases Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Brown Advisory Inc. increased its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 83,610 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after buying an additional 2,287 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc.'s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $12,648,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 152.9% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. ORG Partners LLC raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 434.1% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of ROST stock opened at $141.61 on Wednesday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $133.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $142.39. The company has a market cap of $46.56 billion, a PE ratio of 22.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.17. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52 week low of $122.36 and a 52 week high of $163.60. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 4th. The apparel retailer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.95 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th were paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 18th. This is an increase from Ross Stores's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Ross Stores's payout ratio is currently 25.63%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.48, for a total transaction of $657,097.28. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 110,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,400,425.20. The trade was a 4.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,270 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.70, for a total transaction of $672,979.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 93,126 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,892,190.20. The trade was a 5.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950 over the last 90 days. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Telsey Advisory Group decreased their target price 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. StockNews.com cut shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $130.00 to $128.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Ross Stores from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Barclays set a $150.00 price objective on Ross Stores in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average 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.

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