Merit Financial Group LLC Acquires 2,230 Shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 32.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,174 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,230 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $1,172,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ROST. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Putney Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $51,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on ROST shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $161.00 to $141.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Loop Capital decreased their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. Five investment 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $158.67.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $143.80 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $141.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $142.98. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $122.36 and a 1-year high of $163.60. The company has a market cap of $47.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.65, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.14.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.94 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.46 EPS. The business's revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.13%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.59%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total transaction of $1,481,947.60. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 59,790 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,868,364. This represents a 15.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total transaction of $956,653.48. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares in the company, valued at $17,760,529.79. This trade represents a 5.11% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock valued at $4,439,950 in the last 90 days. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.

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