Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Shares Sold by Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC decreased its stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 5.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 80,922 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 4,953 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $10,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 19,515,891 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $2,952,170,000 after acquiring an additional 3,995,760 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Ross Stores by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,287,162 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $1,250,423,000 after purchasing an additional 135,117 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in Ross Stores by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,620,083 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $1,152,690,000 after purchasing an additional 807,850 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $649,318,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,805,427 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $575,647,000 after buying an additional 154,486 shares during the period. 86.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ross Stores Price Performance

Ross Stores stock opened at $127.87 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $163.60. The firm has a market cap of $41.82 billion, a PE ratio of 20.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.14. The company's 50 day moving average is $140.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $141.30.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $4.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.94 billion. Ross Stores had a return on equity of 38.77% and a net margin of 9.79%. The company's revenue 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. On average, research analysts expect that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal 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 paid 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 1.27%. Ross Stores's payout ratio is 25.59%.

Insider Activity at Ross Stores

In other Ross Stores news, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,270 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.70, for a total value of $672,979.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 93,126 shares in the company, valued at $11,892,190.20. This trade represents a 5.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares of the company's stock, 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 21,567 shares of company stock valued at $2,812,024 over the last 90 days. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on ROST shares. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Ross Stores from $168.00 to $163.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $141.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Five research 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $159.53.

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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