Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST Shares Newly Purchased by AIA Group Ltd

Key Points

• AIA Group acquired a new 55,987-share stake in Ross Stores during the third quarter, valued at approximately $13.1 million; institutional investors collectively own 86.86% of the company.
• Ross Stores reported quarterly EPS of $2.66, beating estimates of $1.95, while revenue rose 13.3% year over year to $6.26 billion.
• Analysts’ average rating is “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $272.06; UBS upgraded the stock to Buy and raised its target to $315.

AIA Group Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 55,987 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $13,067,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Ross Stores in the second quarter worth $5,938,711,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Ross Stores by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,643,656 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $3,116,902,000 after purchasing an additional 734,009 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter worth about $2,024,203,000. Primecap Management Co. CA purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,937,995,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 89.2% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,615,682 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $1,408,148,000 after purchasing an additional 3,118,591 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Ross Stores Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of Ross Stores stock opened at $231.60 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The company has a 50-day moving average of $230.80 and a 200 day moving average of $222.45. The firm has a market cap of $73.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.04, a PEG ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.85. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 1 year low of $157.73 and a 1 year high of $257.00.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 20th. The apparel retailer reported $2.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.95 by $0.71. Ross Stores had a net margin of 10.85% and a return on equity of 39.29%. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.16 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.56 EPS. Ross Stores's revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 8th were paid a dividend of $0.4450 per share. This represents a $1.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 8th. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.55%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Stephen Brinkley sold 6,424 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.66, for a total value of $1,475,335.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,665 shares in the company, valued at $11,865,383.90. The trade was a 11.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO James Conroy sold 49,205 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.48, for a total value of $11,291,563.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 134,349 shares in the company, valued at $30,830,408.52. This trade represents a 26.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ROST. Evercore set a $290.00 price target on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, August 21st. UBS Group raised shares of Ross Stores from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $239.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Zacks Research raised Ross Stores from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Ross Stores from a "buy (a-)" rating to a "buy (a)" rating in a report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $272.06.

Ross Stores Company Profile

Ross Stores, Inc is an off-price apparel and home fashion retailer headquartered in Dublin, California. The company operates primarily through its Ross Dress for Less stores, which offer branded and designer apparel, accessories, footwear, and home merchandise at discounts to regular department and specialty store prices.

Ross Stores also operates dd's DISCOUNTS, a chain focused on value-oriented apparel, accessories, footwear, and home products. Both retail formats generally purchase merchandise opportunistically from manufacturers, department stores, and other suppliers, allowing the company to offer changing assortments and discounted prices.

Founded in 1950, Ross Stores serves customers across the United States through its store network and e-commerce presence.

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