Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Coho Partners Ltd.

Coho Partners Ltd. lessened its stake in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 29.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 520,529 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 213,865 shares during the quarter. Ross Stores accounts for approximately 4.0% of Coho Partners Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Coho Partners Ltd. owned approximately 0.16% of Ross Stores worth $66,518,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 25.7% during 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 purchasing an additional 3,995,760 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Ross Stores by 1.7% in the fourth 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 lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,620,083 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $1,152,690,000 after acquiring an additional 807,850 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the fourth quarter valued at $649,318,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,805,427 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $575,647,000 after acquiring an additional 154,486 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total value of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 139,091 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,760,529.79. This represents a 5.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed 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 transaction, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,868,364. The trade was a 15.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,059 shares of company stock valued at $3,768,677 over the last three months. Company insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on ROST shares. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $128.00 to $126.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Ross Stores from $141.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 13th. 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $159.53.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ROST opened at $127.67 on Friday. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1-year low of $122.36 and a 1-year high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The business's fifty day moving average price is $140.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $141.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.76 billion, a PE ratio of 20.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.14.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $4.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

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

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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