Wellington Management Group LLP Cuts Stake in Ross Stores, Inc. $ROST

Key Points

• Wellington Management Group LLP has significantly reduced its holdings in Ross Stores, decreasing ownership by 87.4% to just 111,524 shares after selling 773,726 shares in the first quarter.
• Ross Stores recently reported a quarterly net margin of 9.60% and earnings per share (EPS) of $1.56, beating analysts' estimates and showing a 4.6% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, translating into an annual yield of 1.1% and has a payout ratio of 25.71%.

Wellington Management Group LLP cut its holdings in shares of Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:ROST - Free Report) by 87.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 111,524 shares of the apparel retailer's stock after selling 773,726 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP's holdings in Ross Stores were worth $14,252,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Korea Investment CORP boosted its position in Ross Stores by 3.3% during the first quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 235,245 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $30,062,000 after acquiring an additional 7,479 shares during the last quarter. Qtron Investments LLC boosted its position in Ross Stores by 14.3% during the first quarter. Qtron Investments LLC now owns 8,251 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $1,054,000 after acquiring an additional 1,030 shares during the last quarter. Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc boosted its position in Ross Stores by 10.9% during the first quarter. Foyston Gordon & Payne Inc now owns 41,996 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $5,367,000 after acquiring an additional 4,142 shares during the last quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. boosted its position in Ross Stores by 4.6% during the first quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,204,015 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $153,861,000 after acquiring an additional 52,851 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. boosted its position in Ross Stores by 42.0% during the first quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. now owns 7,372 shares of the apparel retailer's stock worth $942,000 after acquiring an additional 2,180 shares during the last quarter. 86.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on ROST. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Ross Stores in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ross Stores from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Ross Stores from $156.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ross Stores presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $160.67.

Ross Stores Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of Ross Stores stock traded down $1.89 on Friday, reaching $147.16. The company had a trading volume of 2,633,607 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,327,832. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $138.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $137.39. The firm has a market cap of $48.13 billion, a PE ratio of 23.36, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.11. Ross Stores, Inc. has a 52-week low of $122.36 and a 52-week high of $158.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.58.

Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The apparel retailer reported $1.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $5.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.54 billion. Ross Stores had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 37.37%. The business's revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.59 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Ross Stores, Inc. will post 6.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ross Stores Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 9th. Ross Stores's payout ratio is 25.71%.

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.