Osterweis Capital Management Inc. Cuts Position in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Key Points

• Osterweis Capital Management Inc. has reduced its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. by 12.3%, now holding approximately 244,246 shares worth $31.2 million.
• Insider trading reveals that CMO Karen Sykes sold 4,000 shares for approximately $607,040, reducing her ownership of the stock by 3.62%.
• Despite a decrease in earnings per share compared to last year, Ross Stores reported a quarterly earnings of $1.56, slightly surpassing analysts' expectations.

Osterweis Capital Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 12.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 244,246 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 34,321 shares during the period. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Ross Stores worth $31,212,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ROST. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 50.7% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 217 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 372.5% in the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 241 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Ross Stores by 36.6% in the first quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 280 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ross Stores

In other news, CMO Karen Sykes sold 4,000 shares of the firm's 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,149,236.88. This trade represents a 3.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Up 1.2%

ROST stock opened at $151.10 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a twelve month low of $122.36 and a twelve month high of $158.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company has a market capitalization of $49.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.98, a PEG ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.15. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $141.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $138.13.

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

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business 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 of this dividend is Tuesday, September 9th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ROST. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 28th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $135.00 to $150.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $128.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $156.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $160.67.

Ross Stores 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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