SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. Takes Position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST)

SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. acquired a new position in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 9,567 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $1,223,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Ross Stores by 152.9% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 177 shares of the apparel retailer's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Ross Stores in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Ross Stores during the fourth quarter worth $51,000. Institutional investors own 86.86% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Michael J. Hartshorn sold 7,492 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.69, for a total transaction of $956,653.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 139,091 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,760,529.79. This trade represents a 5.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Karen Fleming sold 5,339 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 34,398 shares of company stock worth $4,439,950. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ROST shares. BMO Capital Markets cut 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Ross Stores from $161.00 to $141.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. UBS Group dropped 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. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Ross Stores from $157.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ross Stores has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $158.67.

Ross Stores Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of ROST stock traded down $1.64 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $142.16. 2,782,285 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,705,225. The stock has a market cap of $46.75 billion, a PE ratio of 22.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 1.14. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $141.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. 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 the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $4.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.46 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.14%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.