56,294 Shares in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Bought by Aurdan Capital Management LLC

Aurdan Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 56,294 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $8,516,000. Ross Stores comprises about 3.3% of Aurdan Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in Ross Stores by 152.9% during the fourth 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. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth about $48,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at $53,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ROST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group restated a "market perform" rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Citigroup upgraded Ross Stores from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $146.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $158.67.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of Ross Stores stock traded up $0.68 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $139.61. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,060,283 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,701,801. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $139.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $142.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. Ross Stores, Inc. has a one year low of $122.36 and a one year high of $163.60. The company has a market capitalization of $45.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.17.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.03. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The firm had revenue of $4.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.46 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.16%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.59%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total value of $1,481,947.60. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at $7,868,364. This represents a 15.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was 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 directly owns 94,063 shares in the company, valued at $11,826,540.99. This trade represents a 5.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.