2,566 Shares in Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST) Bought by Sowell Financial Services LLC

Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 2,566 shares of the apparel retailer's stock, valued at approximately $328,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Ross Stores by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 21,463 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $3,282,000 after acquiring an additional 1,156 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Ross Stores in the fourth quarter worth $51,000. Howard Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,589 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $1,451,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares in the last quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund increased its position in shares of Ross Stores by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 52,209 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $7,898,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, C WorldWide Group Holding A S purchased a new stake in shares of Ross Stores during the 4th quarter valued at $2,023,000. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ROST. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Ross Stores from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Ross Stores from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Ross Stores in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $168.00 to $156.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of 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 issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $159.53.

Ross Stores Stock Performance

NASDAQ ROST traded down $1.05 on Wednesday, reaching $127.28. 2,017,604 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,779,232. The firm has a market cap of $41.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $140.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $141.21. Ross Stores, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $122.36 and a fifty-two week high of $163.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.55.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 22nd. The apparel retailer reported $1.47 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $4.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.94 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.46 EPS. The company's revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. Ross Stores's dividend payout ratio is presently 25.59%.

Insider Transactions at Ross Stores

In other news, Chairman Michael Balmuth sold 11,261 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.60, for a total transaction of $1,481,947.60. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 59,790 shares in the company, valued at $7,868,364. This trade represents a 15.85% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CMO Karen Sykes sold 5,036 shares of Ross Stores stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.48, for a total value of $657,097.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now owns 110,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,400,425.20. This represents a 4.36% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 21,567 shares of company stock valued at $2,812,024 in the last 90 days. 2.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.