Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA trimmed its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 2.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,849,449 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 109,066 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 1.17% of Ross Stores worth $491,921,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 3,995,760 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Ross Stores by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,287,162 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $1,250,423,000 after purchasing an additional 135,117 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in Ross Stores by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,620,083 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $1,152,690,000 after purchasing an additional 807,850 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at about $649,318,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,805,427 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $575,647,000 after purchasing an additional 154,486 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup raised shares of Ross Stores from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $146.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $135.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $158.94.

Ross Stores Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of ROST stock traded up $1.51 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $129.10. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,697,797 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,821,266. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.22 billion, a PE ratio of 20.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.11. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $137.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $138.86. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 12-month low of $122.36 and a 12-month high of $163.60.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $4.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.94 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 38.77% and a net margin of 9.79%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.46 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 10th. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.59%.

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.