Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $38.90 Million Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Ross Stores by 371.3% during the second quarter, owning 304,923 shares valued at approximately $38.9 million.
• Ross Stores reported $1.56 EPS for the last quarter, beating estimates, with revenues of $5.53 billion, reflecting a 4.6% increase year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 1.1%.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 371.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 304,923 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 240,227 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 0.09% of Ross Stores worth $38,902,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vident Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 6,466 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $978,000 after buying an additional 282 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,014,000. Vise Technologies Inc. grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 82.7% during the fourth quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 6,612 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $1,000,000 after purchasing an additional 2,993 shares during the last quarter. GTS Securities LLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 267.0% during the fourth quarter. GTS Securities LLC now owns 1,927 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 3,081 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 187,419 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $28,351,000 after acquiring an additional 9,797 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.76, for a total value of $607,040.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 106,413 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,149,236.88. This trade represents a 3.62% 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. 2.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ROST. Jefferies Financial Group raised Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $156.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. UBS Group increased their price objective on Ross Stores from $144.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Ross Stores from $128.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $160.67.

Ross Stores Trading Down 1.0%

ROST stock traded down $1.51 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $144.67. The stock had a trading volume of 3,294,346 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,464,647. The firm has a market cap of $47.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.96, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.15. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.36 and a twelve month high of $158.69. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $143.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $138.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

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

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.