Praxis Investment Management Inc. Decreases Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

Praxis Investment Management Inc. decreased its position in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 36.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,310 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 3,590 shares during the period. Praxis Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Ross Stores were worth $806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ROST. Hahn Capital Management LLC increased its position in Ross Stores by 40.9% during the fourth quarter. Hahn Capital Management LLC now owns 74,059 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $11,203,000 after acquiring an additional 21,500 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Ross Stores by 274.3% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 20,466 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $3,096,000 after purchasing an additional 14,998 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in Ross Stores by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,620,083 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $1,152,690,000 after buying an additional 807,850 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 22.6% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 2,847 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth $17,221,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.2%

NASDAQ:ROST traded up $0.20 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $127.87. 4,898,082 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,766,879. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $122.36 and a 1 year high of $163.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.14. The business's 50-day moving average price is $140.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $141.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.03. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 38.77% and a net margin of 9.79%. The firm had revenue of $4.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.94 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.46 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is currently 25.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $159.53.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,270 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.70, for a total transaction of $672,979.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 93,126 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,892,190.20. The trade was a 5.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the business's 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 completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 59,790 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,868,364. This represents a 15.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,567 shares of company stock valued at $2,812,024 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

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.