Advisors Asset Management Inc. Sells 9,238 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Key Points

• Advisors Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. by 68.7%, leaving it with 4,206 shares valued at approximately $537,000.
• Insider trading activity includes a sale of 4,000 shares by Chief Marketing Officer Karen Sykes for $607,040, which decreased her position by 3.62%.
• Ross Stores declared a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, reflecting a 1.1% yield, with shares trading around $149.24.

Advisors Asset Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 68.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,206 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 9,238 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $537,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ROST. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 65.1% during the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 95,881 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $14,503,000 after acquiring an additional 37,800 shares during the period. NorthRock Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 244.1% during the 4th quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 5,124 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $775,000 after acquiring an additional 3,635 shares during the period. Nomura Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 28,468 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $4,306,000 after acquiring an additional 2,112 shares during the period. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 74,213 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $11,352,000 after acquiring an additional 3,918 shares during the period. Finally, Mufg Securities Americas Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth about $741,000. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In other news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 4,000 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.76, for a total transaction of $607,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 106,413 shares in the company, valued at $16,149,236.88. The trade was a 3.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:ROST opened at $149.24 on Thursday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.36 and a one year high of $158.69. The company has a 50 day moving average of $141.58 and a 200-day moving average of $138.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market cap of $48.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.15.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.02. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 37.37%. The company had revenue of $5.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.59 EPS. Ross Stores's revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Ross Stores's payout ratio is currently 25.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ROST. Telsey Advisory Group reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $160.00 price target (up from $150.00) on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Monday, August 18th. Loop Capital cut their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $135.00 to $150.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $160.67.

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.

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