Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. Takes Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 67,600 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $10,226,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Forum Financial Management LP lifted its position in Ross Stores by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 1,474 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $223,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Key Financial Inc lifted its position in Ross Stores by 13.2% in the 4th quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 662 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $100,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 3,105 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $470,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,983 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $451,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Finally, West Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. West Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,715 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $411,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.73, for a total value of $671,272.47. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 94,063 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,826,540.99. This represents a 5.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total value of $1,481,947.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,868,364. This represents a 15.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,398 shares of company stock valued at $4,439,950 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ROST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on Ross Stores from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. 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 report on Wednesday, March 5th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $128.00 to $126.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $158.67.

Ross Stores Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of Ross Stores stock traded down $0.77 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $138.93. 3,913,699 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,709,368. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.57. The company has a market cap of $45.68 billion, a PE ratio of 21.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.17. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $139.07 and a 200-day moving average of $142.90. 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 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. The company 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 41.83% and a net margin of 9.95%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.17%. Ross Stores's payout ratio is 25.59%.

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.